Never Let Me Go
by myownsaviour
Summary: When someone close to Sam dies, he is left a broken man. Who will be there to pick up the pieces? Warning: Character death.
1. Prologue: At Peace

**Author's Note: Hello everyone! I have decided to try something a little bit different this time around, so instead of my normal four chapter sets, this story will be much longer. At the moment, it has been planned at sixteen chapters (my number four obsession continues :P). Basically, I wanted to give this style of writing a try, and after thinking about it for a long time, I finally came up with how I wanted to go about doing it. I know I said I was going to produce a piece called 'Kaleidoscope' to be the next story for this site, but eventually I decided to scrap that. It just wasn't working. Anyway, welcome to 'Never Let Me Go', the prologue.**

* * *

Sam and Blaine had been together for what felt like forever. They had begun their relationship in their final year of middle school, and since then, they had done everything together, including coming out to their parents, their friends, and fellow members of the New Directions – their glee club. Life was good, and the fact they had been through so much together, it immediately meant that they had an understanding of each other that went beyond normal relationships. It had all began when, during one of Blaine's visits to Sam's house, the curly haired boy found a collection of the other's writing. He had looked over his shoulder to make sure Sam wasn't around (the blond boy had been called downstairs to sort out some minor issue with the TV – Blaine was useless with that kind of thing so he had stayed upstairs) and when he knew he was alone, he opened the book and began to read through it. It was on the second page when Blaine found the small heart on the top-left corner. Inside, it read Blaine Anderson + Sam Evans. Blaine blushed. Could it be that his feelings for his friend were actually reciprocated? It wasn't a simple unrequited love? After all that wishing, did Sam really like Blaine too? It wasn't long until he had been awarded with his answer, as seconds later, Sam returned quietly to the room, and saw what Blaine was reading. He had been shocked, and ran up the book, slamming it shut. A tear fell from his eyes, as he knew his secret had been revealed. Blaine knew he was gay. But worse, Blaine knew he had feelings for him. Sam prepared himself for the abuse – physical or verbal – but instead he was awarded with a slight brush of the other boy's lips against his own. Both boys had their eyes shut, and when they opened them, they each realised the other had turned a rosy shade of pink. Sam couldn't think properly. Had Blaine really just kissed him? Had he really done that? He tried to form words but all that could come out was a simple stutter, followed by a sigh as he reached in for another kiss from his friend. It was magical, and when they separated for air, Sam could see that his friend felt the same way.

"Sam, a-are you gay?" Blaine held his hand up to his mouth, mindlessly moving his fingers over where Sam's lips had been just seconds ago, and when the blond boy nodded, too afraid to say it out loud; he smiled, and took a deep breath. "That's good, because… Because I-I am too". It didn't take long for the pair to dive in together for another kiss. It was short and sweet, but full of meaning. Full of 'I want to be with you's, teeming with 'I've been waiting's and bursting with 'I've wanted this forever's. From that moment on, the boy's had been through a steady relationship. Sure, there had been perfect moments such as that first kiss, but they had been through their fair share of lows as well. Blaine's coming out to his mom and dad had definitely been a low – Sam would always remember the call he received at seven o'clock at night, a boy in tears at the other end of the phone, begging for Sam and his parents to come and pick him up from the street corner. When they arrived, the true horror of the situation had set in, as they gazed upon Blaine's bruised eye and broken arm for the first time. Blaine filled them in on events as they rushed him to hospital, and the looks of disgust at his father's actions that were smeared across their faces comforted him. They accepted him. They would accept Sam. That was exactly what happened. While the family were sitting in the hospital waiting room, biding their time until the doctor would come to see Blaine, Sam sat his parents down in a quiet corner and told them about him and his boyfriend. Their looks of joy at seeing their son brave enough to tell them spoke volumes, and when they leaned in to give him a hug, they made sure that Blaine was included. This was the kind of relationship that Blaine and Sam had. The ups and the downs, they shared them, and the more they did, the stronger their relationship became. After that event, Blaine had moved in with the Evans family's long time friends the Berrys. There he had meant their daughter Rachel who, although regularly self-centred, was a good person at heart, and quickly became like a sister to him. The girl had been overjoyed to finally have somebody her own age to talk to (besides Sam, but she had only seen him previously at occasions when the two families met), and the more she did, the harder Blaine found it to accept that she had no friends at her school. The Berry family had been amazing to him – they had not taken him out of the school he shared with Sam, and had allowed him to have Sam round practically whenever wanted (a privilege he made sure not to take advantage of). They raised him as if he were their own, and he was so grateful to them – he always would be.

When they had announced that he would be attending William McKinley High School alongside Rachel, he had worried at first, hoping that Sam would be going to the same place. When it had eventually come clear that he was, Blaine had taken the moment to produce a sigh of relief – he didn't have to face the new environment without his boyfriend after all. On the first day, the entrance to the school had looked massive, well, at least until Sam arrived. They had wandered in together, hand-in-hand. Sure they got some odd looks, and some snide comments, but they had experienced it before, and in a disturbing way, it helped them settle in, it felt familiar to them thanks to the attitudes at their last school. At least they knew where they stood in the social ladder – right at the bottom. The time had eventually come around when everyone had to sign up for an extra-curricular activity, and with much deliberating over what they would put themselves down for, they ultimately settled on the glee club.

* * *

"Guys and girls! We have two days until Regionals, and we STILL haven't chosen what song you all want me to sing. With Mr Schue M.I.A., we need to come up with ideas ourselves!" Blaine rolled his eyes. Sure he loved Rachel, but he could see why at times she could get to be a bit much for people who didn't know her as well as he did. He heard Santana throw a few choice insults in retaliation, rambling on about how it wasn't 'The Rachel Berry Show' and how everyone in the group deserved a chance. The truth was, Mr Schue had been ill for the last few days, and seemed like he would be for a little while yet. Although he had promised he would be there to support his group at the competition itself, it was going to be difficult for him to be in school, so they had to come up with their own songs for the performance. At first, the idea had come as a pleasant surprise to the members of the club who felt that they weren't satisfied with the selections of previous competitions, but now, with only a few days left, everyone was beginning to lose hope. Every conversation on the topic would end in an argument about who would sing solo, and what songs they should pick. Even Brittany, who normally remained quiet in group discussions seemed to be out for blood, refusing to accept anything that wouldn't feature Santana as a key vocalist. The situation was dire, and Blaine had just about enough of it. He could see where this conversation was rapidly headed, so he quickly stood up and headed for the drums. When he got there, he picked up the drumstick and banged it down a few times, making noise until everyone in the group had shut up. Once eyes were all one him, he placed the stick down and moved to the front of the class, taking a deep breath.

"Guys, this is insane. We have two days left. Just two, and unless we put our differences aside, there is no way on Earth that we are going to put on a good performance of anything more than the Happy Birthday song on Thursday. Now, how about we completely scrap the idea of a soloist for this competition, and instead focus on creating a streamlined group performance?" The suggestion was met with quiet nods and murmurs to affirmative. "Right, well I'm glad we are all agreed. I have some ideas for group numbers. I believe that there are too many show choir performances centred around musicals or the Beyonce and Lady GaGa songs that currently dominate the charts. How about something a little more left field? I was thinking maybe a mash-up of Take A Bite and Sticks and Stones – two Nicola Roberts songs. They sound fresh, exciting, and I can pretty much bet that they will provide everyone with an opportunity to show off their talents. What do you guys think?" Everybody seemed to be in agreement on the issue – something that pleased Blaine to no end. "Right, now let's get to work!"

Sam sat there watching his boyfriend. He admired him so much. His leadership skills were second to none, and now, thanks to him, they finally had their competition number picked out. Schue who? Sam grinned. He would make sure to reward Blaine later when they got back to Sam's for the evening. At the end of the day, Blaine had certainly been rewarded, a blowjob from his boyfriend, and he was actually so over the moon that he would have hugged a homeless person on his way home had he seen one.

* * *

The curtains lifted, and the New Directions faced out at the crowd before them. There was that kick of adrenaline that just made everything so worthwhile. That rush just before the performance made it all so exciting. The beats of the music kicked in, and the lights came on. The crowd cheered as the choreography brought the group of teens to life.

_You always seem to want to take a pop,_

_Like a bully by the corner shop,_

_All over me like a polka dot,_

_You treat me like someone I'm not._

Once everyone had read the lyrics to the songs that Blaine had suggested, they all agreed that they were a good idea for them to try out, mainly because of how relevant they were to their situation in the school. Sure everyone treated them like crap, and although they had all felt low about it at first, now it just bounced right off of their backs.

_Couldn't you tell lies to me?_

_Couldn't you say I'm pretty?_

_Now that's enough_

_Tells me that she hates the play ground_

_How can they hurt, words are just sounds_

_So take your shot._

Not only were the lyrics well thought out, but everyone agreed that they could all find a piece that they wanted to sing solo. Nobody was left out, and everyone was satisfied. It was the choreography that was going to prove difficult for them to decide on. Normally, the honours were left to their director, but now, with him gone, the rights had been passed onto Mike and Brittany.

_Get your teeth round this open wide,_

_Eyes bigger than your belly tonight._

_If you think you're hard take a bite,_

_You push and push and push, pushed me to fight,_

_Everybody's got a limit alright?_

_So put 'em up, put 'em up, take a bite._

When the music ended, there was roaring applause from the audience, who were on their feet in seconds. Quickly, the team departed from the stage so that the next club could set up. Cheers were produced by all once they returned to the dressing rooms, everyone crowning Blaine as Most Valuable Team Member. It was an honour he had not expected to receive, mainly thanks to his humble attitude, and Sam kissed him on the cheek as he handed him a little medal with 'MVP' etched on the back. In the middle of his thank you to the team, the call came up for all the teams to reassemble on stage. The head judge took to the mike, and when he called out first place, New Directions leapt for joy. They were going to Nationals! They had made it! Happiness stomped its way over their lives, and it didn't seem to want to go away any time soon. Sam and Blaine looked at each other, and held themselves together in a tight embrace. Tonight was one of the best nights of their lives, and they were ecstatic that they got to share it with each other.

* * *

**So there we go. I know it's quite different from my other stuff, but I wanted a bit of a break for now. There are surprises to come though... Maybe not all as nice as you'd hope...**


	2. Prologue: Nothing Else Matters

**Author's Note: I'm hoping I can provide you with a double bill today (you know, two chapters in one day) seeing as I have the time off, but if not, rest assured the next chapter will be up tomorrow. So yeah, thank you for the reviews guys, it means a lot. This chapter was actually the first bit that I had down, but because it didn't serve very well as a first chapter, I decided to hold it back for Chapter Two instead, so here we are. I can't tell you how excited I am to write the next chapter, but for now, let's just focus on this one :P. Anyway, welcome to the prologue, part two.**

* * *

"Sam, don't worry yeah? I'll be back by the fifteenth so I'll just see you the next day. I promise". Blaine was trying to convince himself just as much as he was Sam. It was to be their first Valentine's Day apart, as he and Rachel were being taken on a trip by their family, and although Blaine was dripping with excitement, at the same time, he was less than enthusiastic at the thought of leaving Sam on his own for the romantic holiday. Rachel claimed that she felt the same way about leaving Finn. They hadn't been together long, and so she didn't want to be apart from him. They were still in the honeymoon phase of the relationship, and it made Blaine so happy to see her truly in a good place. Sure she had never been 'sad' as such, but now she was really, really happy, and seeing her like that filled him with joy. She really was like a sister to him, and so the things that made her happy made him happy. He'd even given Finn the 'protective brother' speech, which had made Rachel laugh hysterically when she found out. Still, it was nice for her to know that she had someone to lean back on. Somebody to support her. Someone as caring and just generally nice as Blaine. She didn't really know what she would do without him. When she thought back to the time before he lived with her, she would often subconsciously put him into situations as if he had really been there at the time.

"Okay Blaine, I understand. Yeah, the fifteenth sounds great; we can have our own special Valentine's! It's not like we're the only ones going to be apart from each other this year, so maybe I'll hang with Finn or something. Don't you worry, enjoy your holiday, I'll be fine". Sam wiped the tear from his eyes at the other end of the phone. He had really wanted to do something spectacularly romantic this year, but maybe that would just have to wait. Hey, there was always next year right? The fifteenth isn't so bad anyway – it's only a day late. He just needed to be fine with it for Blaine, because if he wasn't then his boyfriend would spend the holiday worrying about how Sam was doing, and heck, Sam had been meaning to spend some time with Finn anyway. They had so much in common, but they hardly ever spoke, and since he was dating his boyfriend's 'sister' he should probably get to know him a bit better, fully integrate himself with the family. He had been spending a lot more time with Rachel recently, and he really liked her. It saddened him to see just how some members of the glee club treated her. Sure, she could be a handful, but a lot of the time she had good ideas.

* * *

"Hey, Finn! Wait up!" Finn was getting into his truck as Sam arrived at the house, and Sam really didn't want to miss the chance to chat to him. Finn looked around to see who was shouting after him, and when he saw Sam coming up, he smiled. He had been wanting to have a chat with the guy about Valentine's, because, after all, they were both going to be alone, so why not try and arrange something to do? He could really do with getting to know the guy as well. There was no way that could hurt right?

"Hey Sam, I actually wanted to talk to you about something". Sam nodded, urging Finn to continue. "Well, since we're both going to be alone on Valentine's, how about we arrange something to do?" Sam smiled - it was like Finn had read his mind. Everything was falling into place without him having to do anything! "So what do you feel like doing Sam?" The blonde grinned. Time to tell Finn his plan.

"Well, I was thinking that we try and get Puckerman involved too. Maybe a party at his house? We could invite the glee club, and then we'd be surrounded by our friends!" Finn considered the idea. It was certainly not a bad one. Puck was always looking for an excuse to throw a party… Maybe this would work out!

"Yeah, sounds good. I'll have a chat with him, see what he can do". It was a brief meeting of the pair, but they managed to get a lot sorted, and they had gotten along well. Now Sam just had to hope Puck gave them the green light.

* * *

Blaine yawned as he watched the world pass by his window. They had been in the car for three hours now, and there were still two more to go until they arrived at their destination. He had never been very good with car journeys – they always just got boring so quickly, and he couldn't stand it. There was a small nudge at his shoulder, and he turned around to see Rachel just as bored as he was, but obviously looking to try and liven up the trip. She had on one of those playful expressions that suggested she was looking to have some fun, and Blaine smiled. Eventually they decided to play a game with the whole family where they would take it in turns to sing a line from a song, and everyone had to try and guess which song it belonged to. It was genuinely enjoyable, mainly because everybody in the car had great singing voices, so it was like a monster mash-up of all the different musical tastes that inhabited the small vehicle. Blaine loved his family. Somehow they made the most dull of situations into a much more enjoyable occasion. The trip this weekend was going to be great, even if he did miss his boyfriend.

The lodge they were staying at was charming to say the least. It was a mixture of old and modern – an old fashioned log design, mixed in with massive glass windows that gave the family an amazing view of the mountains. Blaine had been shocked as soon as he saw it, and wondering around inside, he felt even more honoured to be here with his family. He grabbed his camera and took a photo. He would make sure that Sam didn't miss out completely. He wondered about his boyfriend – whether he had made arrangements for Valentine's or not. He really hoped he had managed to sort something out with Finn, because he didn't like the idea of Sam all by himself on the most romantic day of the year. He was pretty sure Rachel felt the same way, so it came as no surprise to him when he chanced upon her taking photos of the place to give to Finn as well. He always found it funny how similar him and his sister were – almost as if they were blood relatives. It creeped him out sometimes, he had to admit. He busied himself packing his bag into his wardrobe. He was in love with the place. He heard Rachel shouting from downstairs, calling that they were going out into the village to eat. His phone was left on charge, and he decided he would call Sam tomorrow. Tonight he would just focus on settling in.

* * *

Sam stood outside of Puck's home. He had never been here before, but thankfully, his idea of a party at Puck's had come up trumps, and now the whole glee club was arriving together. Puck opened the door, and invited them all in. Alcohol and snacks were laid out on a table, and there was a mic-stand in case anybody fancied a shot at singing. This had actually been Finn's idea, as he and Sam had spent the morning preparing a song to dedicate to their absent partners. The idea was that they would both ring when they were about to sing and then blast out the song. It was romantic right? Well it was as good as they were going to get with that many miles between them. The day itself had been hard without them, but here it was, Valentine's evening, and they were getting ready to let loose for a little while. Music blared out from Puck's speakers, and it wasn't long until everyone was dancing about drunkenly. Sam and Finn had decided to avoid getting drunk for the night – it wasn't really something that either of them enjoyed. The clock struck nine o'clock, and the pair decided to head up for their song. Sam hit the dial button on his phone, and waited until Blaine picked up.

"Hello? Sam? Is that you?" Sam smiled at hearing his boyfriend's voice again. It made all the difference on a night like this, and he got even more excited about singing the song to his partner.

"Yeah Blaine it's me. I've got something to show you". Blaine was confused. How was he supposed to see when he was this far away? That's when he heard the music start, followed by a yell of joy from Rachel's room. It wasn't long until he saw the girl appear at his door, pointing at her phone, mouthing the words 'it's Finn'. Blaine heard the voices coming across the airwaves, and his small smile turned into a beaming grin.

_It's a little bit funny,_

_This feeling inside,_

_I'm not one of those who can easily hide,_

_I don't have much money,_

_But boy if I did,_

_I'd buy a big house where,_

_We both could live._

A tear slipped down Blaine's cheek, an action that was mirrored by Rachel. They both sat on his bed, with their phones held close to their ears as they heard their partners singing to them so many miles away. Their parents watched from a crack in the door and gave each other a knowing look. They then departed and began packing their bags. They would cut the holiday short so that Blaine and Rachel could be back with their partners first thing in the morning. Sure, they would be traveling through the night, but knowing the parties held by the glee club, it was possible it would still be going on when they got back if they left quickly.

_So excuse me forgetting,_

_But these things I do,_

_See I've forgotten if,_

_They're green or they're blue,_

_Anyway the thing is,_

_What I really mean,_

_Yours are the sweetest eyes I've ever seen._

Blaine and Rachel kept their phones pressed to their ears as they were lead to the car by their parents. When they saw it loaded up, they were confused until the Berry men silently explained what was going on. They really had packed quickly, but since they already had everything half sorted anyway, it really hadn't been that much of a rush. What they had done though, was kick Blaine and Rachel out of Blaine's room so that they could grab his clothes. That was the bit that had taken a while.

_And you can tell everybody,_

_This is your song,_

_It may be quite simple but,_

_Now that it's done,_

_I hope you don't mind, I hope you don't mind,_

_That I put down in words,_

_How wonderful life is now you're in the world._

It wasn't long until the family was once again on the road, and the teens were shaking with anticipation. They had only been away for two days, but they really, really missed their boyfriends. It had to be to do with the time of year. Romance was in the air, and they were so far away. Well hopefully not much longer. The rain pounded against the windows in the dark, making the scene look somewhat picturesque. They rushed down the main road, hoping to get home in record time.

_If I was a sculptor,_

_But then again no,_

_Or girl who makes potions in a traveling show,_

_I know it's not much but,_

_It's the best I can do,_

_My gift is my song and,_

_This one's for you._

Sam closed his eyes as he sang. He had been forced to hang up on Blaine long ago because of credit, but he continued to sing in the spirit of the boy he loved so dearly. What would he do without him? Finn was stood there thinking about Rachel, and how he wanted her by his side right now. He missed her, he really, really missed her. God how he wanted her and Blaine here right now. Him and Sam needed them.

_And you can tell everybody,_

_This is your song,_

_It may be quite simple but,_

_Now that it's done,_

_I hope you don't mind, I hope you don't mind,_

_That I put down in words._

_How wonderful life is now you're in the world._

Hours later, the Berrys arrived in Lima City Central. It had taken them a long time to get there, and they were all shattered. The only thing keeping Blaine and Rachel awake was the prospect of being reunited with their loved ones. Who can say what happened next? Rachel claimed she was too tired to notice what happened, and can't remember anything about the incident, while their parents said that a driver in a black car jumped a read light and plowed right into the side of them, knocking the car over.

* * *

"Sam. It's your mum. There's been an accident. The Berrys were bringing Rachel and Blaine home early, but their car has been hit, and we need to go to the hospital. We are on our way to pick you and Finn up. Just make sure you're ready to leave please". Sam gulped as his mother hung up the phone. He turned to Finn.

"Finn, apparently there's been an accident. We need to leave. My parents are coming to pick us up".

* * *

**So there we go. I hope you liked this chapter. I think you can understand why I kept it back a little bit. I love you all. Please review and let me know what you thought!**


	3. Prologue: Never Let Me Go

**Author's Note: So here we are. My attempt at a double bill. I didn't want you to have to wait to long to find out what happens after the ending of the last chapter, so I've been busy slaving away on this one. I hope you like it. It was quite difficult to write, as I had to take several breaks so that I didn't get bogged down it, but I am quite happy with the finished product. Here goes nothing. The final part of the prologue.**

* * *

_Oh, and it's breaking over me,_

_A thousand miles down to the sea bed,_

_I found a place to rest my head._

* * *

"Mum, what's going on? What's happening with the accident?" Sam was in hysterics as he got into the car. Puck, having seen the looks of distress on Sam and Finn's faces, had called off the party. He had asked what was wrong, but when neither properly responded, he thought best to leave it. When the pair had heard the car pull up outside they had legged it as fast as they could. They needed to know what was happening. Was Blaine okay? Was Rachel safe? What about their parents? Fuck, it had been only a couple of hours ago that they had been on the phone, singing away to them. It had been a happy night. Tomorrow they were all going to be reunited. Tomorrow everything was going to be happy, and fine. But instead, they were here. In a car, on the way to the hospital.

"Sam, you need to keep calm. Please. We don't know much at the moment either son, but we do know that the family was involved in a car accident in Lima City Central. From what I know it's pretty bad, but I'm afraid I don't know much more than that. They are all in pretty bad shape though. I'm sure we'll find out more at the hospital". Panic flooded Sam's senses. A car accident? Please, please Lord, let Blaine be safe. It's all he wanted. His boyfriend, safe at home in his arms. That's all he needed. That's all he wanted. Please let him have that. Please let Blaine be safe. Please let Blaine be safe. Sam repeated the words under his breath like a chant. As if he believed that if he said them enough, then it would become true. If he prayed enough, Blaine would be safe, right? That was the way this kind of thing worked, right? Oh what the fuck, he just needed Blaine safe. What would he do without him? Blaine was his life, his everything. He needed him to be safe. His mind went on cycles until, looking up out his window, he saw the hospital. The family parked in the emergency parking sector, and quickly jumped out, all four of them rushing inside. They reached the emergencies desk, and immediately inquired about the other family. The nurse took on a grim look once she heard that they were here about the Berry family.

"Of course. Follow me please. You must be the Evanses? Let me fill you in while we're walking. Mr and Mr Berry were driving in Lima City Central, and although we're not sure what happened, there was an anonymous call for an ambulance. When we got there, we found the family in an overturned vehicle. The two adults and the girl, um, Rachel, have been taken to Accident and Emergency". Sam was getting even more worked up. This was all great info. But it could wait right? He just needed to know about his boyfriend. About Blaine.

"What about Blaine? How is he? Where is he? You said only Rachel and her dads were in Accident and Emergency. What about him?" The nurse took a look at the boy that was so desperately asking questions. She was about to pull him up on his manners, but then, considering the situation…

"Blaine has been taken into an Intensive Care Unit. His wounds are significantly worse than those received by the others. We believe that the other car hit his area of the car directly". Sam's world fell down. He had to find Blaine. He had to see him. He looked for a sign. Anything to tell him where ICU was. The arrows were pointing the other way. She was leading them to A&E, and that isn't where he needed to be. He had no choice, he had to get there. He quickly turned on his heel, and fled in the direction of the arrows. In the direction of Blaine.

"SAM!" He could hear his dad shouting after him, but he didn't have time to slow down. He needed to get to Blaine. He could hear his father's footsteps behind him. He was following his son.

* * *

Sam reached the Intensive Care ward, and quickly inquired to the whereabouts of Blaine Anderson. The doctor kindly pointed him in the direction of one of the units, and before he knew it, Sam was staring at his boyfriend through a glass window. There was a drip in his arm, and he was fitted with breathing equipment. It was horrific. There were big marks down his right side. Sam wanted to vomit. He couldn't see his boyfriend like this, but he had to. He needed to be brave. For Blaine. He pushed the door open, and cleared his throat. Blaine slowly opened his eyes, and weakly smiled when he saw Sam leaning over him.

"S-Sam. You c-came". Sam had tears rolling down his cheeks as he pulled up a seat next to the bed. How could he not come? He had to make sure his boyfriend was alright. He had to be with him. He smiled at the boy, taking hold of his hand.

"Of course I did silly. I couldn't just not turn up could I?' Sam wiped the tears away from his eyes as he looked down at Blaine. Eventually he gave up. They were falling faster than he could keep them away. Blaine weakly nodded towards the window, smiling. Sam turned around, and there he saw his father, watching from behind the glass panel. He signed that he was going to let them have some time alone, so he just stood there instead of making his way into the room. Sam thanked him internally. Right now he wanted to have some alone time with the boy he loved. The boy he would always love. "Hey Blaine, do you remember how we started out?" Blaine smiled, of course he did. He nodded again.

"Y-yeah. I found y-your n-n-notebook. W-with the heart". Sam loved that memory. Their first kiss. Those few moments when for the first time, they were open about their feelings. "A-and Sam, do y-you remember when we said I lo-love y-you for the first time?" Of course he did. It had been a beautiful sunny day. Blaine and him had gone to the park, and as they sat there, Sam had looked over at his boyfriend, and for the first time, knew that he loved him. Loved him. Not just liked him, but loved him. He had been so happy that he just had to share it. He had looked across at his boyfriend, and said those three words. Blaine had been a bit startled at first, but quickly returned the sentiment. He felt the same way after all.

"Yeah, of course I do. I could never forget that. But why are we focusing on the past? Let's talk about the future". Sam wanted to accentuate the positive. Talking about the past made it feel like there weren't going to be any more memories to make.

"Sure Sam. Can you give me a hug though?" Sam nodded and smiled. He could really do with one of those as well. Blaine wriggled to the side a little bit, allowing Sam to half get on the bed. Enough to give him a hug anyway. "So what's the future Sammy?" Blaine looked at his boyfriend, making sure to take in his smell. He loved everything about that boy.

"Well, we're gonna have a nice big house, and we're gonna have a dog, and we can adopt children. We'll have a boy and a girl. Like Stacy and Stevie. Only we can give them really awesome names. We are going to be amazing parents. You know, the kind that all the other children want as theirs. But more than that, we're gonna be married, and we're gonna live all our lives together. We're going to get out of Lima, Blaine, just you wait and see. It's going to be epic. We're going to do everything, see everything, be everything". Tears were rolling down their cheeks, and Blaine leant in closer to Sam, who held him tighter.

"That sounds nice". Sam smiled. Blaine like his idea. He had inadvertently proposed, but they could come round to that later. Right now they just needed to get Blaine better. "Sammy?" Sam looked at his boyfriend.

"Yeah?" Blaine leant forward into Sam's ear, and the boy held him even closer.

"Never let me go". Blaine looked back at Sam. At the tears that were rolling down his cheeks. His boyfriend was perfect. He had the best boyfriend he could have possibly had. He closed his eyes. Then came the beep of the heart monitor. Sam looked up. There was just a flat line. He knew what that meant, but it had to be wrong right? It had to be. He reached for Blaine's arm. Nothing, no pulse. The emergency button. That's what he needed right now. He reached out for it. Hammering on it, and each time he did, he screamed the word 'NO' over and over again. His father had rushed into the room, as had the doctors. Sam climbed away as they rushed towards Blaine's body, reaching out with the defibrillators to try and restart his failed heart. Blaine couldn't be dead. He couldn't be. For ten minutes the doctors continued. There was no response. Blaine couldn't be dead. They gave it one last shot. He couldn't be dead. But he was. They began packing up, but Sam ran over, pleading with them to try again. He couldn't be dead. What was he going to do without Blaine? The doctors left the room. Leaving the boy with his boyfriend and father. Sam jumped onto the bed with Blaine, holding him close to his chest. Screaming his heart out. Blaine couldn't be dead. This kind of thing doesn't happen. Not to people like Blaine. Not to good people. Rachel was hurriedly wheeled into the room by a nurse, who explained to Sam's father that the girl had only suffered from minor whiplash. She had been cushioned by a blanket and some clothes that had fallen in from the boot. She had been extremely lucky, but as she looked at Sam, clinging to Blaine with all his life, shouting to the heavens, she wished she could switch places with her brother. He didn't deserve this. Sam didn't deserve this. What went so wrong in their lives, that this was the punishment they received? Who believed that this was fair game?

* * *

Enough was enough. Sam couldn't stay holding onto Blaine forever. Rachel was crying her own tears, and although Sam's shouting had stopped, mainly thanks to his throat becoming hoarse, he was now clinging to Blaine, letting the tears fall freely. His father reached over to try and pull him away from the body of his boyfriend, but Sam held tighter. He had one last thing to say. One little thing to tell his boyfriend. He leaned in close to his ear. "I will never let you go".

* * *

_In the arms of the ocean, so sweet and so cold,_

_And all this devotion I never knew went on,_

_And the crashes are heaven for a sinner released,_

_But the arms of the ocean delivered me._

* * *

**So thank you for reading this chapter. That's the prologue completely over and done with now. Time to start work on the next chapter, which is part of the second section of the story. Hopefully you found that this chapter sustained your interest. Please let me know and review!**


	4. Aftermath: Night Terrors

**Author's Note: And so, we move onto the next section of the story. You've read the prologue, and now it's time to take a look at the aftermath of the events that have happened. Rather obviously then, I have named the second section of the story 'Aftermath'. So the next few chapters will be 'Aftermath: xxxxx'… Just like this one! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the prologue, and you're ready to move into the land of 'what happens next'. Here we go everybody!**

* * *

"_Sam, I told you to never let me go, but here we are. I'm dead. It's all your fault. You let me die Sam. How do you feel about that? I only asked you one simple thing, and you couldn't even manage that could you? Maybe the wrong boy died that night. What do you have to say to that? How does that feel Sam? To know you couldn't save the person you loved? Did you feel helpless Sam? Did it feel like your world was taken away from you? Well tough shit. Mine actually was"._

Sweat beaded on Sam's forehead as he tossed and turned in his sleep, and while it did, his breathing rate increased dramatically. He was hyperventilating again. Every night, for the past three months this had happened. He would wake up, his parents leaning over him, and when he did, he could always remember that last speech. He would have done anything to protect Blaine. He would have given anything. If he could switch places, he would. But he couldn't. Blaine was gone. He was going to have to adjust in time. Everyone knew it would be difficult for him, but they hadn't expected the night terrors to last consistently for such a long period of time. He hadn't even had one night's break from them. It seemed like whenever he shut his eyes, those memories were lurking somewhere in the back of his mind, ready to scare him shitless again. His parents were at their wits end. They couldn't bear to see their child in such a sorry state, but that's what they had to do for the time being. They had tried everything, from sleeping pills to sleep psychiatrists, but nothing had done the job. They just had to accept that it was a part of Sam for the foreseeable future. Every now and again the dreams wouldn't be quite as bad, and they wouldn't need to rush into his room, but they knew that they would wake him every night without fail, even on those lesser nights. Sam sat in his bed, wringing his clammy hands together as his mum watched him from the foot of the mattress. His father had gone to get him a glass of water, but his mum didn't want to leave him alone. This was one of the worst nights he'd had, and that was saying something. They'd been awoken from their own slumber when they heard his shouts, and when they saw him lying there hyperventilating; they almost freaked themselves. How were they supposed to deal with this? The nightmares and the terrified feelings they could handle, but how were they supposed to react when these turned into physical symptoms? Eventually they had settled on trying to soothe him with calm words and clear sentences, mostly focusing on the good that was to come in his future, even if it was a future without the boy he loved. Once he had returned to his sleep, the pair headed downstairs. It was time for a chat.

Mary Evans let her head fall into her hands as her husband sat to the side of her, enveloping her into his chest as she began to shake with tears. It was two o'clock in the morning, and she was desperate for sleep, but that didn't look like it was going to happen tonight. Not after seeing Sam like that. Her son. Her baby boy. He didn't deserve any of the pain he was going through, but he had it. Her child. Why couldn't he have a happy life?

"Mary… It will be over soon don't worry. He'll start getting better. He has to". Dwight wasn't sure who he was trying to convince here – his wife, or himself? He took a sip from the coffee he had just made. Tonight was going to be a long one.

* * *

"Mr Schue, we have a problem. We keep talking about Nationals, but we haven't looked at the bigger issue. We need twelve members, and ever since Sam left, we only have eleven. What are we going to do about that?" Finn was confused. It seemed like earlier on, the numbers issue had caused a lot of problems, but nobody had mentioned the fact that without their twelfth member, they weren't actually eligible to compete. Will sighed. His mind had been whirring over the issue ever since Sam quit when he returned to school after Blaine's death. He had hoped that he could convince the boy to come back, but it seemed unreasonable considering all he had been through. In time he would come back, but until then…

"Good question Finn. I was actually thinking that we could just rope in one of the band members to stand in. I'm sure it won't severely impact on our chances of winning". Everyone seemed pretty content with that, and the meeting returned to normal service. Well, until there was a commotion as some of the members saw Sam walk past in the hallway. They had all stayed friends with him – they could understand why he didn't want t return to glee. It wasn't the people - it was the memories. That was why, although he could still sit with them at lunches, he just couldn't spend time with them like he did before. Before Blaine died. Those memories of what used to be were just too powerful. Too scary. Eventually, Will called the meeting of the club to an end. There was no way that they were going to get any work done today. Not with all these disturbances. He needed to talk to Emma anyway. He wanted to know if anyone was keeping an eye on Sam in school hours. Just to make sure he didn't do anything stupid. That boy needed to heal. For now, Will would keep his distance. He realised how much he must remind the kid of his deceased boyfriend.

* * *

Sam sat at the lunch table, quietly eating his apple as he listened to Puck rambling on to Quinn about some nonsense. It had been a big step for him to start sitting with the group again, but he still rarely spoke, often just letting himself get lost in his own thoughts. Every now and again he would notice someone looking at him out of the corner of their eye, making sure he was okay. It reassured him. They were there for him, waiting for him to return to them. He had his time. For today however, he was busy concentrating on what song he would be singing tonight. His parents had signed him up to sing every now and again at the local arts hall, and roughly once a fortnight he would receive a call asking him to come and do a number between acts. It wasn't the same rush that he had from glee, from performing with his friends, but at least he was able to keep his hand in with the music scene. Sometimes constants can make all the difference in dealing with grief. That's what he had learned. Although there were some things he just couldn't return to – glee being one of them. He had tried sitting in the choir room once, but all he could feel was Blaine surrounding him. But, it wasn't the Blaine he knew and loved, it was more like… It was more like the void that his passing had created. A tangible emptiness, thick in the air, hanging over his soul. That's what it was. Quinn's voice snapped him out of his daydream. "Sam, do you want to come out with us tonight? We're going to the movies". Her voice was kind and soothing – she had always been there for Sam when he needed her, and she wasn't planning on letting him down any time soon. In a way, he wanted to go, but on the other hand, the idea scared him. It didn't matter anyway. He was busy.

"I would, but I'm afraid I'm busy tonight". Now everybody's interest was piqued. What was Sam going to be up to? Was he feeling better?

"Oh, what are you going to be doing?" Shit. Sam didn't really think he was ready to let his friends see him perform again just yet. It would be the first time they would see him since Blaine… Since Blaine wasn't around anymore. Was he really ready for that? No. He didn't think so. Excuse. That's what he needed – an excuse.

"I'm going out for a family meal. Sorry guys". He stood up to leave, knocking his bag over in the process. He quickly tried to scramble all his belongings back in, and the process was made quicker by Quinn's assistance. Luckily not many people in the canteen had noticed, so there was no embarrassment there. He headed out of the room. That was a close one. Time for his class.

Quinn looked at her friends, before pulling a piece of paper out from behind her back. "Guys, I don't think we should go to the cinema tonight. How about we go see Sam perform at the arts hall instead?" She was met with confused glances, which dissipated as soon as she pointed out exactly what was written on the leaflet. Everybody's eyes scooted down the page until they found what her finger had landed on. Finn read it out.

"Interval act. Sam Evans. Wait, Sam's performing? Why didn't he tell us? Where did you get this Quinn?"

"I grabbed it when I was helping him put his papers back into his bag. I guess because he's shy now that Blaine isn't here for him anymore. I think we should sneak in and watch. Agreed?" Everybody nodded – the decision was unanimous. The cinema trip was cancelled.

* * *

Sam sat on the stool in front of the audience. Gosh it was big tonight. Deep breath. He started strumming at his guitar as the song began to unfold. When he had heard it, he knew he wanted to sing it tonight. It was him, out on a sleeve. His soul bared to the world.

_It's a terrible love,_

_And I'm walking with spiders,_

_It's a terrible love that I'm walking in,_

_It's a terrible love,_

_And I'm walking with spiders,_

_It's a terrible love and I'm walking in,_

_It's quiet company,_

_It's quiet company._

Quinn held her finger to her lips as the New Directions bustled in to the hall. They had gotten here just in time to see Sam's performance starting up. They wanted to see the whole show, but unfortunately traffic had held them up. At least they would still be able to see what they had actually come for – to support Sam. To watch him perform. As they went in to find a table for them to sit down at, Quinn saw Sam notice them and winked as she waved. The group found one big circular table which would seat them all, and quickly sat down, eager to hear the rest of Sam's song.

_It's a terrible love,_

_And I'm walking with spiders,_

_It's a terrible love that I'm walking in,_

_It's a terrible love,_

_And I'm walking with spiders,_

_It's a terrible love and I'm walking in,_

_It's quiet company,_

_It's quiet company,_

_It's quiet company._

What were they doing here? How did they even know this was happening? What about their cinema trip? Oh well. He needed to concentrate on his performance. He needed to make sure he didn't get the words wrong, or lose the emotion of the words. They meant a lot to him, and he hoped that everyone that he was performing in front of could see that as well. He knew that Quinn did – mainly from the fact he could already see tears forming in her eyes. She hadn't even been here two minutes, and she was already crying!

_And I can't fall asleep,_

_Without a little help,_

_It takes awhile,_

_To settle down,_

_My shivered bones,_

_Wait 'til the panics out._

Rachel had her eyes fixed on stage. In all this, she had clung onto the glee club. It had been the rock that had helped her mourn her 'brother'. The truth was, she felt as bad as Sam did, she just showed it in a different way. The two had hardly spoken since the incident, even though it was clear to them both that they wanted to. Nobody else understood what they were going through. To them, Blaine was the most important boy in the world, and he had been snatched away from them. How were they supposed to deal with that?

_It takes an ocean not to break,_

_Company,_

_It's quite a company,_

_It's quiet company._

Finn wrapped his arm around Rachel. He knew how the song must be affecting her. It was the first time he had heard anybody talk so obviously about Blaine since the funeral. It made him understand that, although Blaine was buried in the ground, Sam and Rachel weren't done with their mourning yet. He was such an important factor in their lives, and now he was gone. Rachel at least had Finn there to love her and support her, but Sam… Blaine was Sam's everything. Who did he have? Other than his family of course. But it wasn't the same. There were some things that only a romantic partner can help with. Blaine was that to Sam, but that life was buried when Blaine got into that accident. Everyday, Finn guiltily thanked God that Rachel hadn't suffered the same fate. It felt bad, because he thought he should be praying for Blaine, but he couldn't stop himself from thanking Him every night that the girl he loved was still alive and in one piece.

_But I won't follow you,_

_Into the rabbit hole,_

_I said I would,_

_But then I saw,_

_Your shivered bones,_

_They didn't want me to._

Sam was tearing up now himself. Really unprofessional, but maybe it added to the performance. Maybe it let people know how much he was linked to the words. Not that he really cared about any of that right now. His head was filled with images of Blaine, of memories that they shared together. Of those last few words. 'Never let me go'. There was something so profound about them. That idea of eternity. Eternity and Blaine seemed to go together hand in hand. He was gone, for eternity. He was at peace, for eternity. Sam clung to that sentence. At peace. At peace. Blaine couldn't ever be hurt again.

_It's a terrible love,_

_And I'm walking with spiders,_

_It's a terrible love that I'm walking in,_

_It's a terrible love,_

_That I'm walking with spiders,_

_It's a terrible love that I'm walking in,_

_It takes an ocean not to break,_

_It takes an ocean not to break,_

_It takes an ocean not to break._

He was met with a standing ovation as he finished his performance, led by the New Directions. They had always been there for him, so why couldn't he face going back there again? He wanted to, but he was too terrified. He trembled at the thought of that group without his boyfriend there to help him through his everyday life. What was he going to do now? As he headed backstage, he saw the glee club stand up to follow him, before Rachel seated them all back down. He knew what was coming. He needed to talk to her. She followed after him, the rest of the glee club knowing what was going to happen. They understood that this wasn't just Rachel stealing the spotlight, this was her talking to somebody about the loss they had both suffered.

She found herself seated across from Sam in a dimly lit room. It was always like this backstage in the arts hall. Too much light could apparently have an effect on the visuals onstage. She held his hands as he looked at her. "How did you all know I was going to be here tonight Rach?" She smiled fondly at the nickname. It was one Blaine had always called her, and Sam had eventually adopted it too.

"Quinn found a flyer when you knocked your bag off the table. We wanted to surprise you. To show you support. Because you haven't got anyone like I do, and we all wanted to show you that although you may feel like you are, you aren't alone Sam. Trust me, I feel as shit about this whole thing as you do. Blaine was practically my brother. Actually, scrap that, for all intents and purposes, he _was _my brother. I wouldn't be able to walk around like I am if it hadn't been for everyone in glee. They all helped so much. They care. There's a vibe in that club, and it heals me so much. Not just me either. Look at how everyone else acts there – we all have dark periods, but in glee, we're all happy at the end of the day, because we are surrounded by our friends. I feel that ghost hanging in the room as well. Blaine's there whenever the glee club meets, but it's because he wants to see what's going on. He would want you back there Sam. Come back to glee Sam. We all really miss you". Rachel wiped the tears from her eyes as she finished what she had to say. She didn't wait for an answer, but instead quickly walked out the room. She would find out his response soon enough.

* * *

The New Directions watched as the clock ticked round, closer and closer to four o'clock. They were all silently hoping the same thing - that Sam would appear. But there was no sign of him. The meeting started, and there was still no sign of the boy. Maybe he would come late? Half an hour passed, and there was no sign of him. Rachel looked up at Quinn and sighed. She had really hoped that her message had got through to the boy. That she had convinced him enough to rejoin. The pair raised their hands for permission to be excused. Once granted, they wandered around the hallways together, looking to see if Sam was about. He was. They saw him sitting quietly in an empty classroom, hunched over a piece of paper. They watched from outside, as he struggled with whatever was in front of him. Whatever it was, it was very important to him. They turned and left him to it. What they had to say could wait.

_Dear Blaine,_

_I don't know how much longer I can do this. I need to start moving back into normality. It's been three months since you left, and although I know that it is still reasonable for me to be grieving, I just can't deal with it anymore. The sleepless nights, your ghost following me everywhere. I love you Blaine, I always will, but I need to start piecing my life back together. I know you'll understand, because Rachel was right. It's what you'd want. I'm going to be better Blaine. I'm going to protect the things and people I love. I failed to do that for you, and it is killing me, but I can't let it. I need to make up for it. I know nothing will, but I need to at least try. I'm going to make you proud Blaine. Just you wait and see._

_Yours eternally,_

_Sam_

_xx_

* * *

**So there we go. I hope you liked it. Please review and let me know what you thought. How long will it be until Sam can start to heal? Is there anybody who can help him? Find out soon!**


	5. Aftermath: We Can Break These Chains

**Author's Note: Chapter Five is finally here! I'm glad to see that you liked the first part of the 'Aftermath' section, and here's where we move into Part Two. I wanted to try something a little different with this chapter, so it is split into two sections – the first is from Sam's point of view, whereas the second… Well, you'll have to find out won't you? Anyway, here goes, and I hope you like it!**

* * *

"Sam, please… We need you. The band members have refused to take part in the competition, so we're one member short… Please, come back to glee. Help us out". Sam was torn. Nationals was in four days, and here, Quinn was practically begging him to make his return. And not just in private – the whole club was gathered in the canteen, all eagerly waiting for his answer. The difficulty was that, although he wanted to say yes, wanted to save his friends, whenever he looked at them, all he could see was Blaine's broken body, his last words of 'never let me go'. It sent shivers down his spine, but then, they were his friends. He loved them dearly, and he couldn't just leave them like this could he? He glanced around the circles, quickly meeting everyone's eyes. It terrified him. It terrified him just how much they needed him. All he could see, was Blaine, and his eyes in those last few seconds. Those desperate, pleading eyes. He had said he would make Blaine proud. He had said he was going to move on. But not yet. He wasn't ready. It wasn't time. He glanced up at Quinn again, before returning to his food. The words fell out of his mouth. His decline to return. There was a silence around the group for a minute. It was too silent. That's when it snapped. Santana was on her feet. She didn't yell or shout. That was too disruptive in the manic canteen, but in a way, the quiet tone she used was much more hurtful when the words came out of her mouth.

"Well then, you've put the nail in our coffin. You've let us down Sam Evans. Your own friends. Fuck this, I'm out of here". Quinn gasped at the words Santana used. Sure, Sam's decline meant that they wouldn't compete, but… It wasn't really his fault was it? She looked from Sam to Santana, and then back to the blond.

"Santana, that's not…"

"Fuck it Quinn. It's the truth. Everyone knows it. Rachel is back. Blaine was practically her brother. Now I know that everyone deals differently, but there is no way on earth that Blaine would have stood for this if he was here right now. I hope you're proud of yourself Sam Evans". She stormed out of the canteen, with Brittany following close behind her, her hand on Santana's back, obviously trying to calm the girl down. Sam was sat in a stunned silence. Was it true? Was he letting Blaine down? He had only considered how he felt, about whether he was ready or not to return. But maybe… Maybe he needed to put his own feelings second. Maybe he should have agreed to return. He looked around the table again. There it was. In the eyes. Although they wouldn't admit it, they felt the same as Santana. From their point of view, he was letting them down, and that was a fact that Sam couldn't escape. He stood up. He couldn't be around the group right now. Not after what had happened. He returned to his locker, opening it to put his books away. As he did, a small piece of paper fluttered onto the floor. It had a short sentence on it, scrawled in Santana's handwriting. "Life goes on". He looked at it for a minute, as if it were some kind of disease. But then, a small smile crept over him. It was true. Life does go on. Blaine's death wasn't going to be the death of Sam Evans as well. It was going to hang over him for a long time coming, but he would get over his grieving. There would be somebody there later in life. Somebody that would 'get' him. Somebody like Blaine, who wasn't Blaine. He wasn't going to be alone forever, and that thought filled him with hope. Life would get better. Maybe in short, small steps, but it would. It had to.

* * *

Later that night, Sam sat with his family. There was a meeting of the glee club tomorrow, and he wanted to return to the club with a bang. He wanted to prove that he was there for them, that he wasn't about to allow their efforts to compete at Nationals go to waste. Santana had a point. Life does go on. But what Sam had realised, was that he had to help himself on his way back to normality. He had to allow it. He had to let go. He had to put the effort in. And that's exactly what he was going to do. He excused himself from the living room, and returned to his bedroom. He picked up his guitar, and sat down in front of his computer. If he was going to make a return at this stage in the day, he needed to make sure that he backed it up with an idea for Nationals. Of course, it was entirely possible that they had decided on their music, but from his past experiences with the group, it was unlikely that the setlist would be finalised until the day before the competition. Then again, with it being Nationals, they might have taken a more organised approach. He skimmed through his iTunes. He needed to make sure that he could relate to the song, that it had significance to his life at the moment. He searched until his eyes grew tired from looking at the screen. Maybe he wouldn't find the right song. Maybe he wasn't time to break out of this mess yet. Break out… Shit, that was it! He jumped back over to his laptop, quickly finding the track he wanted. He ran over the chords with his guitar, making sure that he had them down pat. He wanted to make sure that it was perfect. Nothing less than his friends deserved.

* * *

"Right guys, Nationals is in two days, and we are still short one person. I'm guessing your attempts to try and get Sam to rejoin didn't work out too well?" Mr Schue sat in front of the group, wringing his hands together. What was he supposed to do now? He had run out of ideas. The band members, Sam Evans, they had all turned out as dashed hopes.

"The truth is Mr. Schue, that Sam obviously just doesn't care about us as much as we do about him". Santana's opinion made its way across the room, and people nodded their heads. It was true after all. "I guess we just have to pass on Nationals this year". Whimpering was heard coming from Mercedes, who held her head in her hands. All of her hopes and dreams… Crashing down.

"Actually, I don't think we need to cancel our entry at all". A familiar voice echoed through the room. Everyone looked up, at first thinking they must just have been hearing things. But as they turned their heads up, before them stood… Sam Evans. The boy smiled. He sat in front of the group. It was time to show them his song. Mr. Schue patted him on the back as he took his seat in the centre of the room. Sam tapped his shoe on the floor three times before he started playing, his fingers delicately moving themselves across the strings.

_I just don't believe,_

_I'm ready for today,_

_This paranoid pain is coming back again,_

_Oh that picture Momma placed,_

_By the window how I hate my face._

Rachel sat in her seat, afraid to move. She knew that if she did, she would snap out of the trance that the song had put her in. The words cut through to her soul, because it was how she had felt in the first month or so after Blaine's passing. The thought that Sam still felt like this scared her a little. He was still afraid of a life without Blaine. Yeah, she had those moments as well, but she had managed to assure herself that she would go on to live a happy life with her boyfriend. Blaine was gone, and she had just had to accept that fact, even if it terrified her more than anything had done before. She could still remember that day in the hospital. When she had been brought out of bed by the nurses who informed her about her brother's condition… How she had been rushed through the corridors of the hospital, how it was already too late when she got there. How her brother had died when she was busy worrying about her own recovery.

_And there's people all outside,_

_Behind the curtains silver lines,_

_With all their lies,_

_They're all like mine all like mine,_

_But when the wind blows,_

_I'll go I'll go._

As Santana watched the performance, pride filled her. She had never failed to read people, and Sam wasn't going to be the first person she got wrong. She knew what she needed to do to get him back in glee, the words that would get him here. Where he belongs. With his family. She looked around at her friends. They really were a family, just like Britney said. Sure, she sometimes hated her fellow members, especially when they were stealing the limelight, but she knew that at the end of it, she would always be there for them. That note she had left in Sam's locker… She knew it would work. She could see he had been worried about his future, and she knew that in order for his heart to heal, he needed to be reassured that life would continue. Yeah it was manipulative, but she dared anyone to say that she did the wrong thing. The only results were good.

_And I will be released,_

_Break these chains set me free,_

_And I will be released,_

_Break these chains._

Schuester sat watching his student as he sang his heart out. The song was catchy, but also heartfelt. The lyrics could speak to almost anybody, mainly because of their handling of inner demons. Maybe this would work well for Nationals. He would ask the club afterwards, see what they had to say on the idea of giving Sam the solo. Of course, he would have to make sure that the boy was in a fit mental state before he agreed to let him perform at the competition. Make sure there weren't going to be any nasty surprises, like him pulling out at the last minute. The kids really deserved the win, especially after a year like this. Of course, the judges wouldn't know anything about the situation with Blaine, so the group's performance would have to be flawless. There were going to be no second chances.

_I can think of brighter days,_

_They were golden in a way,_

_Words were not this grey,_

_But now prices will be paid,_

_When I walk in the path,_

_Of all you guilty ones someday._

Sam's mind flitted back to his nighttime ritual. Last night had been the first time he had altered it in a long time. Until yesterday, his days had all ended with him praying to his boyfriend. Praying for his spirit to stay safe, praying that somehow, Blaine would find a way back to this life. He would kiss the photo he kept by his bedside as he turned out the lights, and pray again. But then, yesterday… He didn't pray for Blaine to return. He prayed instead, that Blaine would find comfort wherever he was, and that he could get on with his life after Blaine's passing. It seemed cruel to give up hope, but he accepted reality. There was no way that Blaine would ever return. He still kissed the picture, but he slept with it in his draw, instead of standing on his bedside table. It was a small, but significant step towards healing his heart and soul. He knew that Blaine would have wanted him to be happy as soon as possible. Happy was still a way off, but this was sure an improvement… a step towards normality.

_Cause I cannot help my heart,_

_When it's beating in the dark,_

_Afraid next time I won't cry,_

_I won't cry,_

_And when the times change,_

_I'll go away, I'm away,_

_And I will be released,_

_Break these chains set me free,_

_And I will be released,_

_Break these chains._

Blaine watched the events from his place in the surroundings. He was so… So fucking proud. It was good that Sam was beginning to move on. It's what he wanted. He wanted Sam to be happy, even though he was dead. What he would give for just one more hug with the blond boy, but that was unfair on Sam. He, Blaine Anderson, was dead. There was no way around the fact. Time to slip away.

* * *

Rachel and Quinn sat with Sam. These chats were becoming a regular occurrence. They had each grabbed hold of a hand, and looked directly into Sam's eyes. Rachel was the first to speak.

"Sam, thank you so much. I know what you did today wasn't easy, but it really is for the best. We can all compete, and what's more, Blaine will be so proud of you. I can just feel it". Sam grinned at the words. That had been what he wanted to hear. He didn't care about the solo he had been offered… He just wanted someone to tell him that somewhere, Blaine was proud of him. He nodded, and Quinn squeezed his hand, giving him a sympathetic smile. A small tear was tainting her cheek.

"Sam, is there anything you want us to do?" The boy contemplated the issue for a minute. There was something he would love them to do with him… But maybe that was asking too much? No, they were his friends, he would ask them to accompany him.

* * *

Rachel linked her arm through Sam's as they wandered through the cemetery. It had been the first time they had been together. Quinn and Finn followed quietly behind, visions of Blaine's funeral passing through their minds. The polished black coffin. The multitude of flowers. The many, many people. It had been an emotional service, even more so than for a normal funeral. Of course, the fact that it was a young person in the coffin had made an impact on proceedings. It seemed wrong, unnatural. Rachel and Sam reached the grave. The headstone was still shiny and new, completely spotless, but Sam proceeded to wash it anyway, while Rachel lay down flowers just in front of it. They were simple actions, but the fact they had managed to do them together meant all the difference. Finn and Quinn watched from their place in the background, a melancholy smile on their faces. The place sent chills down Quinn's spine. To think somebody her age was there underneath the ground… It didn't even bear thinking about. She shook of the chills, and went up to give Sam a hug. He looked like he really needed it, and Finn was comforting Rachel. The sky was clear as the group left the cemetery. Not a cloud in the sky. Just like Blaine liked it.

* * *

The boy ran down the stairs when he heard the post had been put through the letterbox. He needed to find out – had he been accepted? He hoped so. He really, really hoped so. He had spent such a long time trying to convince his mum and dad to let him go, so now he just needed the letter of acceptance. Then it was all-clear for him to go. He ripped open the envelope, his eyes skipping down to the important bit. "We are pleased to offer you a place on our exchange program". The boy smiled. Finally! He was going to America!

"Rory, get your faggy arse in here!" His mother yelled over the TV. The boy took a deep breath, and went to tell her his news.

* * *

**So, I hope you liked this chapter. I had a great time writing it! I'm so excited to write a bit more. Sorry for the slow updates, there's just been a lot going on recently. Anyway, please review and let me know what you thought! **


	6. Aftermath: We Can't Be Found

**Author's Note: So, for some reason, despite having planned out every chapter from the beginning to the end of this story, I seemed to have simply written down one word for this chapter – 'Nationals'. Now of course, as great a prompt this is, it didn't really help me think about how I was making a proper chapter out of this, as opposed to just an account of the competition. That's my excuse for why this chapter has taken so long – I was trying to decide on the storyline for this chapter. Then, yesterday, just before bed, I remembered where I had put my original in-depth plan for the chapter. As a result, I have managed to go with what I originally planned. Hooray for my ditzy-ness. Anyway, I hope you enjoy my 'Nationals' chapter. Oh, and by the way… This is the last chapter in the 'Aftermath' section! Which means there might be a couple of big changes coming up next chapter…**

* * *

Sam peeked through the curtains. It was manic out there in the auditorium – he didn't even want to think about exactly how many people there were trying to find their seats at the moment. It was insane. Easily the biggest crowd the group had ever performed to. Of course, it was Nationals. They hadn't expected it to be a small audience. Shit. The nerves were almost unbearable. What's more, the New Directions were the opening act, so it wasn't even like they had the opportunity to watch the competition first. It was up to them to set the bar so high that nobody else could top it. And with 50 other show-choirs in the running, that bar was going to have to be bloody high. If only Blaine was here… No. There was no time to focus on that side of things. All he needed to know was that Blaine was somewhere out there, supporting him. Giving him strength. That was enough for Sam. Just to know that his boyfriend was somewhere in the ether. He felt chills running through his bones at the prospect of performing without the boy near to him., but he knew, in his heart of hearts, that Blaine hadn't left properly. Not yet anyway. And he wouldn't until Sam was ready for him to. He ran back to the waiting room, where his friends were strewn around the place. It was always fascinating to watch how each gleek handled the pressure. Finn was often pacing in the back somewhere, and Artie could normally be found rutting his chair into a wall, the nerves simply too much to take. On the other end of the spectrum, Santana often draped herself over a chair, lazily taking in the surroundings. In a way, it was so typical of her character. Sam wondered what could actually scare that girl. She just seemed to have an immunity to fear. He wandered over to Brittany, who was sat on the floor, legs crossed.

"Hey Britt, how're you feeling about the performance?" Sam had never really spent much time before performances talking to the girl, having previously opted for chatting with Blaine or Rachel. Brittany was similar to Santana in the sense that she never seemed particularly nervous, but Sam put that down to her being completely oblivious to what was going on around her.

"I'm worried. What if I muck up? Lord Tubbington said he would kick me out if I don't do very well tonight. I don't think I can handle that kind of pressure". Sam grimaced at the mention of Britt's cat. It always unnerved him just how much she seemed to believe that the pet was just as human as her own parents. He knew better than to comment though – Puck had tried that once, and Santana had pretty much ripped him to shreds on the spot. Sure, she seemed all thin and fragile, but between her sharp tongue and vicious nails, she could do some serious damage to someone. Sam wasn't sure he could take that. Especially since he would never hit a girl. That just wasn't the done thing. He simply patted Brittany on the back, showing that he was supporting her.

"Don't worry about it. You're gonna be great, I can feel it". Sam wasn't really sure what she was fretting over, she didn't really have much to do this time around, but then again, its possible she was worried about the team as a whole. She was just that kind of person. Stupid, but so lovely. There was a bustling from the far side of the room, which caught Sam's attention. He turned around, hoping to find out what was going on. Everyone was quickly bustling away from the door as the organiser came into the room, informing the group that they should head up to the stage. Sam took a deep breath, looking upwards for strength. "Come on Blaine. Don't let me fail". He closed his eyes and ran onto the stage, taking his place for his solo.

* * *

He returned backstage after his moment in the spotlight, while Santana and Quinn took their places in front of the audience. It was over. He had done his very best. He hadn't forgotten any of the words, he hadn't missed any of his queues, and he hadn't let himself lose the moment to his emotions and his regret that his boyfriend couldn't be there. Overall, he was pretty pleased with how things had turned out – a feeling seemingly shared by the rest of the group who were waiting for him with hushed applause. Santana and Quinn were doing a great job of their song as the rest lined up into their places for the group performance. Whispers were passed along the group about nerves, about excitement, about hopes, and more importantly, fears. The group had rehearsed the number so much, that Sam was pretty sure that they could all do a bloody good job of it in their sleep. But still, nerves were never a bad thing – as long as there weren't too many. Anxiety was good - it could boost a performance. Terror on the other hand, was not. But still, nobody seemed to be going down that route, so Sam was thankful for that. A massive round of applause from the audience broke him out of his daze and informed him that the girls had finished their performance. The New Directions ran onto the stage for the first time as a group, heads down in the dark, and unanimously took a deep breath. Time to give it their all.

_I know you didn't realize,_

_That the city was gone,_

_You thought there would be advertisements,_

_To give you something to go on._

Finn had kicked off proceedings, confident as ever. He had really tried hard on the choreography as well, that much was evident from how much better he was that he appeared normally. Sam was impressed. His vocals were great, and it clearly set the tone for the whole group. The front row of the audience seemed to be getting into the music and the beat, and although he wished he could, Sam couldn't see any further back into the seating thanks to the lighting arrangements. Still, if that small group were any indication, the audience seemed pretty hyped by the earlier two performances given by the club. Sam smiled. It was going great! Maybe they really had a chance of winning this thing after all. If only Blaine could've been here…

_So we search the sky,_

_For any flashing signs,_

_We've gone too far beyond,_

_The border it's just you and I,_

_And if this is the end,_

_It's the best place I've ever been,_

_It feels so good to just,_

_Get lost sometimes._

Sam and Kurt moved to the forefront of the stage as they sang their verse together, their voices – one deep, the other a contrastingly high vocal – melding together brilliantly. The harmony had actually been Miss Pillsbury's idea. She had suggested it to Mr. Schue during one of their 'lunch-time staff room lunch dates' that were fabled among the teachers in the school. Sam hadn't originally thought that the idea would work out, but in practice, it worked brilliantly. He had been excited to sing the song ever since he had been given the part, and now, here it was. He loved the thrill so much… The rush of blood, the adrenaline pumping through his veins. It made the nerves… It made the nerves so worth it.

_Only the horses,_

_Can find us tonight,_

_Only the horses,_

_Can bring us back home,_

_Our tracks they will follow,_

_They'll hear us calling,_

_And save us by morning light,_

_Only the horses,_

_Can bring us back home,_

_Tonight._

_Tonight._

Santana and Mercedes traded off lines in the chorus, carefully showcasing what Sam believed to be two of the most interestingly matched vocals in the group. It didn't matter what the song was, if you got those two to duet, it always sounded so bloody fantastic. Sam put it down to the fact that they were both such confident singers, that even if they went wrong, you would hardly notice it. No wonder Mr. Schue had awarded them the chorus together. It was an ingenious move, one that was bound to impress the judges. Brittany and Mike then moved to the forefront of the stage as the dance-break came in. Sam had completely forgotten about that – it would definitely explain Britt's earlier nerves. As the music returned to the chorus (time limits had stopped the group from being able to perform the whole song), Rachel moved up for her moment in the spotlight. She seemed a little distressed, but the blonde put it down to nerves.

_Only the horses,_

_Can find us tonight,_

_Only the horses,_

_Can bring us back home._

Sam couldn't believe it. Had that really just happened? As the girl moved to hit her note, she had hit it flat, and it clashed into his ears, totally ruining the dynamic of the song. He looked over to her, where she had tears in her eyes. What had happened? Why hadn't she hit the note? She always did. Always. Rachel Berry never failed to hit a note. Never failed. Why now? Why at Nationals? Santana quickly stepped in to take the rest of the chorus on as Rachel quickly moved to the back, getting out of sight as quickly as possible. Sam desperately wanted to run over and see what had happened, ask her if she was okay, but the current situation – being on stage 'n' all, prevented him from doing so. He would have to wait until afterwards.

_Our tracks they will follow,_

_They'll hear us calling,_

_And save us by morning light,_

_Only the horses,_

_Can bring us back home,_

_Tonight._

The team quickly ran off stage, dashing to their dressing rooms. Sam quickly grabbed a hysterical Rachel, sitting her down on a stool. He held her hands as he looked into her eyes. He needed to know what happened on stage.

"Rach, what was that on stage? What went wrong?" She looked up at him through her damp eyes, red from crying, but also tinged black from her mascara. Her eyelashes were stuck together as she looked at the boy before her. He was so kind to make sure she was okay. She expected him to be fuming. She hadn't noticed, but the rest of the group had stood in the doorway, ready to barge in and demand answers, but Sam had stopped them, also without Rachel noticing. She was just too caught up in her sadness.

"I-I just… It's just… I kept thinking, how it wasn't right. It wasn't right Sam. Blaine… He should have been there with us. It's not right. It's wrong Sam. It's wrong". The boy wrapped her up in his arms. She had been through so much – she had lost her brother, but everyone had been so busy making sure he was okay, that they hadn't realized that the strong image Rachel portrayed was all an act. She missed him just as much as Sam did. The group behind her shuffled, alerting Rachel to their presence. She spun around, expecting anger, but instead, she was met with concern. Santana and Quinn each grabbed a shoulder as they joined in with Sam, hugging her tightly.

"It's okay Rachel. We understand. Blaine, he… He meant a lot to all of us. Especially to you and Sam, but yeah, a lot to all of us. We were off-form anyway, so don't worry. We wouldn't have won. Let's just hope we placed, eh?" Santana's kind words had been a surprise to the group, and it was obvious that she was just trying to comfort the crying girl in front of her – the group had been on amazing from – but it was beside the point. The major issue was the way they had all, Finn included, allowed her despair to go unnoticed. That, was what was wrong with the situation.

"Rachel, I'm so sorry. Everyone was so focused on me, and how I was coping with Blaine's death, that they didn't notice how you were feeling. I was selfish. I should have made sure they kept an eye on you. I shouldn't have taken up all their time, so that you were left alone. I needed so much help, and you felt that you needed to be strong, because there couldn't be two of us in the deep end. I'm so sorry Rach". Sam sighed. It was a lot to say, but it was true. She really did need the same help that he had received. Sure, they had offered her sympathy, but she just hadn't had that same level of care that Sam had received, and for that, he felt quilty.

The group rushed to see the results just outside of the facility. They wanted to see if they had placed after all that happened. They eyes flickered down the list. They had placed! Seventh! Sure, it wasn't top five, but it sure was better than nothing. Heck, they were in the top ten show choirs in the country. Now that was something to write home about…

* * *

Brittany stood in front of the club, ready to deliver her news. They all looked a little confused – it wasn't like her to demand attention. But she had said it was urgent, so everyone had their ears wide open.

"Guys, I have a problem. Well, Lord Tubbington signed me up to the leprechaun exchange program, and I thought it sounded like a good idea, so I played along. But apparently, leprechauns only like people that are passing all of their classes, and I'm not totally sure what a class is, but I know that I don't qualify. The deal is though, is I need to find another home for the leprechaun to plant his pot of gold, otherwise he has to stay on the other side of the rainbow, so um… Will any of you guys give the poor person a home?" Everyone looked blankly at each other, clearly not understanding Brittany's long and convoluted story. Santana rushed to the front.

"Basically, Britts was due to take an Irish exchange student in, but because she doesn't have high enough grades, she isn't allowed to, so can any of you give him a home, because otherwise he won't be able to come over to America". The group nodded in understanding, obviously concerned about the Irish boy and his trip to the USA. It was certainly an interesting topic. Sam stood up.

"I'll check with my parents tonight, see what they have to say".

Finn stepped up to Sam in response, looking him in the eyes. "Sam, are you sure that's a good idea? We don't want you or Rachel under any extra stress". The group nodded in agreement. Sam shook his head.

"No, I really want to help. I'll check tonight. End of."

* * *

"Mum? Dad? I need to ask you something. It's about an Irish exchange program at school. Brittany Pierce had originally signed up as a host, but she isn't allowed to host the boy, because her grades are too low-"

"So, can we host instead?" Dwight butted in, halfway through Sam's sentence. He had always been good at reading his son. It was a skill he wasn't going to let go of any time soon. But then again, it wasn't that much of a skill – he was pretty easy to read for anybody. "I think that it sounds like it could be a lot of stress on your part-"

"But, Dad, I think it'll be good for me. Y'know, to have something keeping me busy".

"Now Sam, don't interrupt before I finish". Dwight grinned at his own hypocrisy. "It's rude. Anyway, I was going to say that it sounds like a lot of stress, _but _maybe it'll do you good to have something to focus on. Please tell Brittany and your school that we will be happy to have the boy live with us". Sam jumped on his father, smothering him with a hug. Mary looked on, and thought to herself about how cute the moment was, before her mind turned onto thinking about how this was going to mean extra laundry. Urgh, Sam, Dwight, Stevie and Stacy were bad enough already. Never mind an extra one… But still, it was nice to see Sam excited for something.

* * *

"Yes, my parents are happy to have boy stay with us". Sam sat in Miss. Jones' office as he filled out the necessary paperwork. She handed him the boy's name and home phone number, informing him to ring him later that night. Around nine pm, as that would be a reasonable time in Ireland – just before school. Sam gratefully accepted the slip, and crept out to resume his day at school. Rory Flanagan. It had a nice ring to it.

"Um, hello. This is Sam Evans, I was wondering if I could speak to Rory Flanagan?" Sam had quickly glanced down at the piece of paper to double check the name. The woman on the other end of the line groaned.

"Oi! Rory! You're needed. Phone. Pick up the phone! Hurry up! Hurry up you little fag! I don't have all day!" Sam was repulsed by the tone the woman was using, but more so by that word… 'fag'. He hated it so much. When the boy answered the phone, he was flustered.

"Oh uh, hello. I'm er… I'm sorry abo-about my delay. I hope you'll forgive me. How can I help you?"

"Ah, don't worry about it. My name's Sam Evans. I'm going to be your host in America". Sam Evans. It had a nice ring to it.

* * *

**Wahooo! So there you go! Anyway, time to move onto the next section of the story now! I'm really excited to get writing it. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, review and let me know please! Love to everyone for the support!**


	7. Arrival: New Beginnings

**Author's Note: I'm really happy to finally be starting this third section of the storyline! Finally, Rory enters the plot for real, and I'm really excited. Basically, this chapter is pretty much a little introduction to the character – in fact, this section is all about building up Rory's character, so expect to see a lot of it from his perspective. I was also excited about being able to show a bit more about Sam's home life – I think two certain little people had been missing until now, but that's all about to change… Anyway, on with the story that I actually want you to read!**

* * *

_People told me slow my roll I'm screaming out fuck that,_

_Imma do just what I want lookin' ahead no turnin' back,_

_If I fall if I die know I lived it to the fullest,_

_If I fall if I die know I lived and missed some bullets._

* * *

Rory glanced out of the window, at the clouds below him. There was something about flying – it comforted him, but scared him at the same time. It put his problems into perspective when he saw everyone on the earth like ants, but in another way, it made him feel insignificant, like he really wasn't of any value to anyone. It had been hours since he had left the airport in Ireland, and now, finally he was in the home stretch. It cheered him up – the thought of landing. The thought of a whole new life, away from the pain, away from his past. That was what he had to do. He had to hide his history, hide his roots. That way, he could be a new person. A person. Not some kind of animal. Someone who's name didn't always have the word 'fag' attached to it. Fag-son. Rory the fag. Faggy arse. The shackles of his confinement still clung to him – those words would haunt him forever. But for a while at least, he was free from that life. He didn't have to go back for a year, and even then there was the chance that he might be able to return to America. Although he loved his family (even though they treated him like… that…), a large part of him wanted to be allowed to stay on at WMHS. It couldn't be worse than life back in Ireland. Rory shuddered in his seat – a mix of the memories and the cold temperature. Just put it in the past. Time to look towards the future. Towards William McKinley. Towards Sam Evans, and the whole Evans family. Apparently Sam had two little siblings – a brother and a sister. Rory racked his brain for their names. Damn, how could he have forgotten? He had tried so hard to memorise them. There was his father, Dwight, his mother, Mary, then Sam, and then… It had gone. He'd have to try and find out later. Sneakily of course. He had to make a good first impression. He couldn't just come out and say that he'd forgotten the names of two of the children. That would be disastrous. Sam seemed nice enough anyway. In the emails, he had always made a concerted effort to ask about how Rory was doing. Already, the Irish boy felt he had Sam as a friend in America. That wasn't a bad start. One before he had even arrived. In a way, he was relieved that Brittany was unable to host. She had seemed nice enough, but incredibly ditsy, and to be perfectly honest, Rory just wasn't sure he could cope with that on a daily basis. Maybe he would see her about at school… He wondered what Sam would look like. In his mind, he had always pictured a blond guy – maybe just above average height. The jock type. But then again, it was anyone's guess…

Sam turned up the radio in his car, mainly due to the noise of the freeway, which was vastly overpowering the music, but also because one of his favourite songs was playing – 'Postcard from Paris' by The Band Perry. He almost never heard it playing on commercial radio, so he had been a little surprised when he heard the opening notes. He hummed along gently as thoughts of Rory the exchange student filled his head. He knew he was around the same age as Sam, and knew that he had a strong accent (that was evident from the phone conversation), but that was about it. Sure, they had messaged each other throughout the summer, but he still didn't really know much about the boy. This was partially deliberate. He wanted to make sure that they would have something to talk about during the journey back to the house from the airport. Plus, he wasn't exactly the biggest fan of reading – his dyslexia played a big part in that, so although they messaged often, he tended to try and keep them short and sweet. Of course, he hadn't wanted to appear rude, so he made sure that asked after Rory's health and happiness. Just a casual 'how are you by the way?' never hurt anybody. He wanted to make a good first impression, so it was very important to stay polite. Appearances were also important, for obvious reasons, so he had spent around an hour that morning just trying to choose what to wear. Then add onto that time the two hours it took for him to wash, actually get dressed, and then sort his hair out, it had taken him almost as long to get ready as it had when he would prepare for his dates with Bla… No. Not now. It was going to be a good day, so he needed to try and keep his mind off of that boy. Instead, he turned his mind to the activities he had prepared for him and Rory in the next couple of days before school started back up. He knew he would need to take the boy to the shops to make sure that he had everything he needed for lessons, because otherwise, the teachers at WMHS could be vicious. But then again, that was just generally teachers everywhere. Sam turned into the airport car park, looking for an empty space. What would Rory look like? Well, he was Irish, so he must have red hair. Maybe a little fat… Definitely a beer drinker, even if only sixteen. But, was he gay? Although Rory had never hinted at his sexuality himself, there was always that first phone call playing on Sam's mind. That word. Fag. It was repulsive and offensive. It was derogatory as fuck, so why did Rory's own mother use it? That just didn't seem right. Maybe she was only joking? But then, Rory had sounded quite disturbed when he had finally answered the phone. It was sure to come clear eventually. He took his WMHS bag with him, and put it on his back. That way, Rory would easily identify him – especially if he waited by the boarding exit.

* * *

Rory rolled his massive suitcase behind him as he headed through the last section of security. The plane had landed an hour ago, but there had been massive queues, and then there was a delay in luggage… He couldn't believe it had taken him this long to get to this point. Hopefully Sam hadn't waited for too long – and if he had, hopefully he wasn't impatient. He handed his passport over to security, and then, finally he was free. He followed the stream of people out of the hall, and into the arrivals area, where a large crowd was waiting. Fuck. How was he supposed to identify Sam in this bunch? He knew they should have sent each other a photo… His eyes scanned the area, hoping to find some clue as to the identity of Sam Evans. That's when he spotted it – a red rucksack with the letters WMHS slapped on the back. He quickly trotted over to it, to find… Fuck, this was freaky. The boy was exactly as he had pictured! Blond hair, jock-like (totally hot), and just taller than average. He tapped the boys shoulder and coughed.

"Excuse me, are you Sam Evans? I'm Rory Flanagan. Nice to meet you".

Sam whirled around on hearing the name, to be met with… Well… Fuck. The boy was nothing like he had expected. Slim, with black hair and more than a little attractive. Sam stood, staring, before realising that he actually needed to give a reply.

"Oh, um, yes. Sam. I am. I mean… I am Sam. Hello. Should we get out of here then? Let me take your suitcase". The blond quickly grabbed the handle and spun around on his heel before Rory could catch the massive blush that was crawling up his face. All he had needed to do was give a normal answer, like a normal person, but no. Instead he had gone and gotten all flustered. Urgh, this was so embarrassing. He found himself at the car before long. The pair had walked in a comfortable silence, but it was about time to start actual proper conversation. Sam didn't want Rory to think he was ignoring him. He buckled himself into the drivers seat, while he gestured for Rory to hop in next to him. He keyed the ignition, and then engine started. Once they were on the main road, Sam decided to start asking questions. Now was going to be a great opportunity to get to know the boy who would be living with them for at least a year.

"So Rory, what kind of music do you like?" Sam was pleased with himself for getting the words out in a sentence that actually made sense, unlike his earlier words to the boy. Rory looked contemplative for a minute, before tilting his head back up to meet Sam's.

"Well, I guess I like all sorts really. Like my iPod has like Nicki Minaj, but then on the other end of the spectrum, I have stuff from musicals like Wicked". Sam smiled. Okay, with tastes like that, Rory had to be gay. Wow, way to play up to the stereotype. Sam chided himself internally. He shouldn't just assume. "Most of the people I know think it's a really camp music taste, but I like it, so, yeah…" It was Rory's turn to blush now.

"Personally Rory, I think it's cool to be varied. And hey, nothing wrong with having some camp music. Gotta have some fun every now and again right?" Sam smiled as he spoke, and action that immediately put Rory at ease. God that was a nice smile. Focus Rory, focus. "I'm pretty varied myself. I love all sorts of music. I think, when you can like a bit of everything, you have a pretty wide set of options open to you – you can talk music with pretty much anybody!" Sam laughed at his own little comment, with Rory chuckling afterwards.

"I guess, yeah! So, how long were you waiting at the airport?" This was a question that had been playing on Rory's mind ever since he had gotten into the car. Sure, Sam hadn't shown any signs of being miffed that he'd had to wait, but still… Never hurt to be polite 'n' all.

"Well, I was running a bit late, so only about forty minutes. I had all my apologies prepared in case you had been made to wait. I spent a bit too long trying to get myself sorted". Rory was happy that the boy hadn't had to wait for ages. That would have been a bad start. "So, what's it like in Ireland Rory? What are your parents like?" And there was the million-dollar question. The one Rory had hoped he wouldn't be asked. Of course, it was inevitable, but he hadn't had time to think of his answer yet, so he did the only thing he could think of – he shrugged.

"Yeah, they're okay I-I guess". Sam noticed that Rory's voice wavered a bit, but he decided that it was probably not the best idea to push further when he had met the boy just over thirty minutes ago. He was sure he'd find out in time.

"That's cool. Anyway, Rory, we're here". Sam pulled into the drive, turning the ignition of before running round to open Rory's door. The Irish boy had been busy faffing with his seatbelt, which had gotten stuck, so Sam's act didn't seem quite as desperate as it might have first appeared. He had to remember that Rory could easily take the action the wrong way. He didn't want the boy to think he was trying to be romantic. He was just trying to be polite. Not wanting to dwell too long on the subject, Sam left the door open as he went to grab the suitcase that was currently sitting in the boot. "Oh, and by the way, my brother and sister… I just need to warn you, they're really excited to see you, so they might be a little… hyperactive". Rory smiled. That was no big deal. But damn, he really needed to remember their names…

Sam opened the door, letting Rory into the home. The sound of four little feet quickly hurrying through the house echoed throughout the hall, and before the two teens had a chance to react, they were met with two small bodies being hurled towards them. They flung themselves at Sam, before noticing Rory, and quickly stepping back. The girl leant into her brother, and the pair shied away.

"He just looks like a normal person!"

"Shush Stacy! He can hear us! Don't be silly, of course he would look the same!"

"Stevie! You thought the same thing! You thought he would look funny too!" The pair quickly spun around to face the teens again, smiles on their faces, as if nothing had happened. Sam grinned. Rory chuckled. Luckily, he hadn't even needed to ask their names, they had told him themselves, in their own unique way.

"Sorry to disappoint you guys". The two children gasped.

"Stevie! He talks funny! He talks funny!"

"Okay children, enough of that". A voice came from behind the kids, and everyone looked up to see Sam's parents standing there. "Sorry, they've been so excited to meet you. Stevie, Stacy, say hello to Rory". The children looked back towards the Irish boy, cheeky smiles upon their faces.

"Hello Rory! We welcome you to our home". The sentence was followed by giggles, suggesting that the pair had maybe spent a little while rehearsing what they wanted to say.

"Thanks Stevie, Stacy. It means a lot". Rory smiled at the pair, before being grabbed by Sam.

"Come on, I'll show you where you're sleeping. You must be exhausted. Everyone can properly get to know you in the morning". With that, Sam hurried the Irish boy up the stairs, following behind with his suitcase. "I'm afraid that you are going to have to share with me. Is that okay with you?" Rory nodded. He could tell he was going to enjoy his stay in America.

* * *

_I'm on the pursuit of happiness and I know everything that shines ain't always gonna be gold,_

_I'll be fine once I get it, I'll be good._

_I'm on the pursuit of happiness and I know everything that shine ain't always gonna be gold_

_I'll be fine once I get it, I'll be good._

* * *

**So Rory and Sam have finally met in person! I hope you liked the chapter. I'm really excited about all that's coming up, and I hope you are too. Please review and let me know what you thought. Hopefully I'll see you next chapter!**


	8. Arrival: I Don't Care If It Hurts Me

**Author's Note: I'm so happy that I have this chapter up now… I've been a bit lazy, I know, but I've been really busy with getting back away from the break, so the workload is like… Urgh… Anyway, break's over, so I'm back with an update! I'm also happy to announce that, although originally, this story was only going to have one more section after 'Arrival', I have been inspired on the issue of how to continue into the future, so look out for surprises and all ahead! Anyway, enough of me babbling on and on and on (and on), let's get on with the chapter! Presenting 'Arrival: I Don't Care If It Hurts Me':**

* * *

Sam turned around; making sure to lock the car door once he saw Rory was out. The blond couldn't believe it was finally here. New school year, new competitions, and, hopefully, new friends – plus, there was always the possibility that the glee club's social standing had improved a bit… No, that was a far off dream. Sam took in the sight of William McKinley in the few moments before it was packed with people – it was odd, starting a new year without Blaine there for him. He felt so much more insecure about himself, about his standing in the bigger scheme of things. He had known it would be difficult, obviously because of the typical misery that he felt when thinking about Blaine, but also because before, he had always known that even if his friends abandoned him, he would still have a shoulder to lean on. That had been taken away from him, so immediately, this school year seemed all the more risky. He wanted to be careful – there was no way he could deal with the prospect of losing one of his friends if he said something hurtful, or if an argument got out of hand. Especially not without Blaine the mediator to help things be smoothed out. Rory stopped beside him, his mouth ajar as he looked around at the massive campus. His school in Ireland had been so much smaller – more in the realms of three to four hundred pupils than the two thousand students that attended McKinley. He had expected it to be big… But not like this… Luckily, his introduction to the building was a little before the main student body arrived – the Evans family had received a letter explaining that the school needed to see Sam and Rory at 8.00 (half an hour before the everyone else normally arrived). Sam looked back down at the piece of paper that had been so meticulously presented. He needed to take Rory to room H3, just opposite Figgins' office. That was a geography room. Sam hoped he wouldn't have to speak to Miss Hindelberg. She was such a bitch – just because she was sixty-three and had never had a boyfriend, she felt it necessary to not only preach her strongly sexist views to all of the girls in her class, but to also make all the boys' lives hell. She claimed it was a necessary deed to rectify the hundreds of years of female repression. The students just thought it was because she was bitter and twisted. Honestly, between Coach Sylvester, Coach Washington and Miss Hindelberg, the McKinley faculty sure had some wacky people. Sam often wondered where they recruited their staff. The answer he had eventually arrived at, was the mental health ward at the local hospital. There was not other option. There just wasn't. Sam shrugged those thoughts away – he needed to concentrate on taking Rory to his destination. As they walked, Rory hummed quietly to himself – a song that Sam didn't recognise, but it was undeniable that there was a clear quality to his tone. Sam made a mental note to listen out for Rory actually singing at some point. Could he be a possible member for the New Directions? Sam looked up, realising they had arrived at the room. The lights were off, and the door was locked - odd, considering that they were already five minutes late. He looked around – there was nobody in Figgins' office either.

"What d'you think Sam? Have we got the right place?" Rory looked a little nervous – he obviously didn't want to make a bad impression on his first day, so Sam double-checked the letter again. Yupp, it definitely said H3. Rory was visibly confused at what was going on, and Sam had to admit, that he was also a tad unsure about what was going on. He was about to phone home when the pair heard the footsteps running along the hallway. Sam spun around as a man in his twenties ran past him and into the door of H3, keying the door so that he could get in ASAP. In his hurry, he had dropped two of his files, and paper was strewn across the floor. Sam and Rory bent down to pick up the sheets, and once they had collected them all in, they handed them back into the teacher who was now standing with the door open, inviting the two boys in. Sam had never seen the man around school before, which was odd considering he knew practically every faculty member.

"Sorry I was late boys, I overslept and then… Oh, never mind. My name is Mr Drewe, and I'm supervising Rory's stay with us. Well, I say supervising, but it's more kind of… Meeting up with the pair of you maybe once or twice a month. Just to catch up on how things are going and shit like that… Oh fuck! Sorry, language! Damn, I did it again. I've been working in the local youth offenders' institute recently, and it seems some of the language has rubbed off on me. I do hope you'll forgive me." Sam was wide-eyed at the man. He was so… Unorganised. Not only in his thoughts, but also in his appearance. It was clear he had been in a rush to get here – his hair was still ruffled, his shirt not properly tucked in, and his tie not done up properly, but still, he seemed nice enough. He handed both boys a sheet of paper from his purple file, pointing out his phone number and contact details in case they needed him. "I believe I also need to take you to the reception across the hall to get Rory registered into the school database." Sam and Rory looked out the window to the reception on the other side of the hall. It was unattended. No surprise, considering the staff weren't expected in for another ten minutes. God this man needed to get himself organised.

* * *

The boys emerged from reception with Rory's planner in hand. His first period was free, as was Sam's so the blond decided to have a look around and see if he could find any of the other gleeks to introduce to Rory. The boy would need help making friends in this school, where strangers were most definitely not welcome. If he was being honest, Sam was worried that Rory was going to be given a rough time by some of the many numbskulls that thrived in McKinley's hallways. It had been an issue that had plagued the glee club members from day one, but they had grown accustomed to it. Rory on the other hand… From what Sam had figured out, he pictured America to be some idyllic place where everybody was accepting of everyone else. Sure, maybe in the big cities such as New York that was the case, but Sam knew from his own experience as a gay boy in the area, that McKinley, and by extension, Lima, wasn't exactly the most open-minded place in the world, and the fact that Rory was a foreigner would make him stand out like a sore thumb. Prime pickings for the bullies in the school. That's why he was desperate to help Rory make a big group of friends. He wanted to make sure the boy had a strong support base. The kind of support base offered by the New Directions. It didn't take long for them to find the gleeks milling around in a big group. It wasn't unusual for them to all spend time together – mainly due to their social standing meaning they actually had few other friends in the school to hang out with. Mercedes and Tina were the first to run over to meet Rory. Sam had kind of expected that – the two biggest gossips of the group had been whittling on about meeting the Irish kid all through the summer. The blond had planned to take Rory to meet his friends in the last week of the holidays, but he had instead focused on making sure the boy was settled in with the family. Friends could wait until term time.

"Heyy, so I guess you must be Rory… I'm Tina, and this is Mercedes. We've been really looking forward to meeting you." Rory was taken by surprise as the two girls practically jumped him. They were definitely double teaming. Rory laughed. The tactic of two girls running up to a guy in order to introduce themselves because they were a little shy to do it by themselves was obviously in use in America too. "We're really hoping we'll get to know you better. Maybe you could join glee club with us. It's always a lot of fun, and everyone's like a big family." Rory smiled. He had heard Sam chatting fondly about the club before, and from what he could remember, they were supposedly pretty good. If he recalled correctly, they had been to the Nationals competition last year. Maybe signing up to a club would be a good idea…

"Girls, let him breathe. The rest of us would like to meet the boy as well you know." Finn was looking over from the group, just as eager as the girls to meet the boy, but concealing it much more expertly. "Hey, I'm Finn. Nice to meet you. If you need anything, just gimme a bell. Talking about bells, time for me to get to class." Soon, almost all of the club went to attend their lessons. The only people remaining were Sam, Rory and Tina. The pair decided to show Rory around the school for a bit, something that would definitely be of use to him. They led him through the halls, showing him the way to his first classroom, and as they did, they walked past the clubs sign up sheet. Rory made the group stop, and he rummaged through his bag for a pen. He pulled it out, and searched for the New Directions sign up sheet, his friends watching him, wondering what he was looking for. When they saw him press his pen into the sheet for the glee club, they smiled. It would be nice to get some fresh blood into the group, and even more exciting to see how well he sang. They then continued on their route through the campus, showing Rory the way from his class to the canteen. It was very simple, so it wouldn't be difficult for him to find where all the gleeks liked to meet for morning break.

After his lesson, Rory began the short walk to the canteen, only to find himself shoved face first into a locker. He was knocked to the floor, but made to look after the culprit. All he managed to see was the football jacket as the hulking boy walked away, muttering under his breath something about 'stupid faggy glee kid'. R ory couldn't believe it. How did he know? He thought he'd escaped that word. Escaped that name. He felt himself being picked up as he thought – an action that pulled him out of his head. Tina was smiling apologetically at him.

"I'm sorry Rory. Especially considering it's your first day. Glee club isn't exactly high up on the social ladder, so we tend to get picked on a lot. Sure, it's a hell of a lot of fun, but I know for a fact that everyone wishes that the rest of the student body would just stop giving us hell for doing what we enjoy. Maybe you should make sure that you know what you're getting into before you decide you definitely want to be a part of the club. I'm not saying that it isn't worth it, because it is, but not everyone is willing to go through all the torment." Rory frowned at the revelation – Sam had never mentioned the problems the club was presented with in regards to bullying. Heck, wasn't that one of the reasons he wanted to get away from Ireland? To get away from the bullying and the torment? If being a part of the glee club was just going to bring all that back… Then maybe it wasn't for him. He needed to see what Sam thought about the issue. The pair could discuss it later that night. For now, Rory just wanted to focus on getting through the rest of his day.

* * *

"Hey, Sam? Can I talk to you a minute?" Rory looked across the bedroom to Sam, who was concentrating hard on his book for English.

"Sure, what's up?" Sam placed the book down on the bedside table. Rory's expression looked serious. It was the first time he had seen the boy look anything but happy.

"It's about the glee club. Well, you know I signed up for it, but then later in the day, I was knocked into some lockers by a big jock guy. I'm still not totally sure how he figured out that I was Rory Flanagan, but that's beside the point. Tina said that you guys often have issues with… Bullying and being teased and picked on and stuff like that…" Rory let it all blurt out, and Sam saw the concern in the boy's eyes. The blond nodded for the boy to continue. "When I decided to come to America, it was to get away from all of that kind of incessant bullying, because back in Ireland it never stopped. Do you think it's really a good idea for me to audition for glee?" In Sam's mind, Rory's reveal that he had been bullied back in Ireland almost confirmed the idea that Rory's parents were more than a tad disrespectful towards their child, but, it also raised a whole load more questions. Was the boy really gay like his mother had suggested by using… that… that word?

"What? Why did you get bullied back in Ireland? And as for glee, I think it's up to you. All I can say, is you'll probably get stick for hanging around with us anyway. I doubt being an actual member of the club will drastically alter the amount of difficulties you might encounter just by spending time with the group." Rory shifted uncomfortably in his seat at the prospect of having to discuss his issues in Ireland, especially with a boy he had met only a week ago. But then again, he felt like he could already trust Sam. There was just an aura that he gave off which made Rory feel comfortable. Maybe there was no harm in letting Sam know…

"Well, mainly because… Well…" Gosh, how could it be this difficult to tell the boy? He had already come out to everyone at home. Maybe it was because of the reaction he'd received back there… "It was because I'm gay, and… people there… They weren't exactly accepting." Sam smiled sympathetically – an action which confused Rory. What was nice about that?

"Rory, homophobia is an issue that I know all too well. When I came out, the general population of McKinley and Lima weren't exactly welcoming. My parents and my friends were, and that's what mattered, but everyone else was just so… Enraged by the fact I liked guys instead of girls." Rory had to admit, he was stunned by Sam's revelation. He had always put the guy down as straight… But then again, he hadn't exactly known him for the longest time. But Sam made a valid point about the club – if he was going to spend time with the members anyway, he might as well be a part of it. "Rory, is there anything else you wanna talk about?" Sam seemed genuinely interested, but Rory shook his head. He needed to prepare himself mentally for his audition tomorrow.

* * *

_Someone once told me that you have to choose,_

_What you win or lose,_

_You can't have everything,_

_Don't you take chances,_

_Might feel the pain,_

_Don't you love in vain,_

_Cause love won't set you free,_

_I can't stand by the side,_

_And watch this life pass me by,_

_So unhappy,_

_But safe as could be._

Rory opened his eyes in front of the glee club. He had met most of them already – Tina and Mercedes were sat in the front row, right next to each other, while Sam was sat near to Finn and Rachel, the giant's tiny girlfriend. He had heard them talking about Quinn, the blond cheerleader who was sat next to the boy with the mohawk. He looked pretty intense – Rory decided immediately that he was not somebody to cross. Near to him were two more cheerleaders. He had heard about the Latina from Sam. Apparently she was the club's resident evil bitch, although deep down she loved them all. According to Tina, Santana's insults could cut deep, but she rarely meant what she said. They were more designed to cover her own insecurities. There was a guy in a wheelchair, and an Asian guy with short spiky hair sitting in the corner. On the other side of the room, near to Mercedes, was a very effeminate guy. Rory decided that he was most probably Kurt – apparently best friend of Mercedes and Tina.

_So what if it hurts me?_

_So what if I break down?_

_So what if this world just throws me off the edge,_

_My feet run out of ground?_

_I gotta find my place,_

_I wanna hear my sound,_

_Don't care about all the pain in front of me,_

_Cause i'm just trying to be happy, yeah,_

_Just wanna be happy, yeah._

The song had been something important to him whenever he had been feeling down back at home in Ireland. The lyrics just really spoke to him. The idea that the person just didn't care how bad things got, as long as they were happy in the end… It was something he held dear. It had always been especially useful when his parents… No, no time for that. He had to focus on the song, otherwise he might be turned down. He wanted to make sure he made a good first impression, because, as he had always been taught, first impressions are extremely important. He looked over to Sam who was smiling at Rory – obviously happy with how events were proceeding.

_Holding on tightly,_

_Just can't let it go,_

_Just trying to play my role,_

_Slowly disappear, ohh,_

_But all these days, they feel like they're the same,_

_Just different faces, different names,_

_Get me out of here,_

_I can't stand by your side, ohh no,_

_And watch this life pass me by, pass me by._

After the performance, Rory was greeted to a round of applause from the rest of the club. Mr Schuester patted him on the back, welcoming him to the group. The rest of the meeting had been quite interesting, the teacher providing them all with info about how this year they needed to be totally on the ball. Once the club had finished, Rory ran back to his locker through the groups of people milling around, waiting for their friends, leaving study classes etc. etc. hoping to quickly pick up his folders before he and Sam left for the evening. He clicked the locker open, and grabbed his files for his bag. With a slam, he shut the door, turning around to be met with… Ice? Fuck what was that? It was so cold, and wet, and… Ah fuck, his eyes were stinging. He heard somebody shout from behind him as he stood there dripping wet in slushie. He felt strong arms grab him, and thumbs wiping the liquid from his eyes. He dared to open them and saw Sam staring at him.

"Let's go and get you cleaned up Rory. We can't have you dripping in corn syrup for the journey home." Rory allowed himself to be led to the boy's toilets, where Sam made him wait while he grabbed a seat from the classroom opposite. Rory sat down and leaned his head back against the sink as Sam told him to, before feeling the boy's strong hands pressing into his head, rinsing the slushie out of his hair. "I have some spare clothes in my locker. Kurt's grabbing them for you. I texted him to ask him to bring them over. He should be here any minute". Rory smiled. Sam was so thoughtful.

_So any turns that I can't see,_

_like I'm a stranger on this road,_

_But don't say victim,_

_Don't say anything._

Kurt arrived promptly, bringing Sam's folded up clothes in his arms. He left just as quickly as he had arrived, only pausing to swiftly apologize for having to rush off. Sam stood Rory up and pulled the sticky top off the Irish boy. He handed the boy a paper towel to mop his torso off with. His skin was so pale. Shit, his chest was pretty hot. It wasn't defined like Sam's was, but it certainly wasn't fat. The boy was slim, and everything seemed so in proportion. Sam handed the boy the dry top, which Rory quickly got into. He shrugged off his trousers – the corn syrup had quickly dripped all over them, and they now had an embarrassing wet patch around the crotch – and took the jeans that Sam held out for him. They were a little too big, but luckily, they had a belt attached to them, so they wouldn't fall down. The pair quickly left the toilets, having put Rory's wet clothes in the bag that had previously held Sam's spares.

"You see, that's why I always have spare clothes on me. It's not as bad as it used to be. Rachel, Kurt, Mercedes and Tina used to have to wear coats around the school to make sure their clothes weren't ruined. They always got it worst. I just always wish I could've done something.

_So what if it hurts me?_

_So what if I break down?_

_So what if this world just throws me off the edge,_

_My feet run out of ground,_

_I gotta find my place,_

_I wanna hear my sound,_

_Don't care about all the pain in front of me._

Mary Evans came to greet the boys as they walked through the door, but was shocked to find the Irish boy wearing her son's clothes.

"What happened boys?" Sam rolled his eyes at his mother's question. Surely she should know by now… But then again, she might not have expected Rory to be slushied on only his second day.

"Rory was slushied. Looks like America's making a really great first impression". Sam had to admit, he was embarrassed by what had happened – it didn't really paint a good picture of his home country.

* * *

**So there you go. It's the longest chapter I've ever done, so I hope you weren't bored by the end of it. Please review and let me know what you thought! **


	9. Arrival: Take It Away

**Author's Note: I'm really sorry for the slow updates at the moment guys, I'm sure things will be back to normal soon. So, apparently has been purging the database… They really are the evil overlords… Anyway, luckily, none of my pieces seem to have been affected, but still… I'm pretty sure some of my favourite pieces have disappeared -.- So yeah, back on with this piece. Arrival is a section of five chapters as opposed to three of each one previous, so there aren't going to be any drastic changes quite yet I'm afraid. Don't expect a Sory relationship to appear out of nowhere (although I really want it to… I haven't actually written any properly happy relationship sections yet…) Anyway, let's get on with it! Arrival: Take It Away.**

* * *

Sam looked at the three people around him – Rory, Tina and Mercedes. They were all good friends – heck, Rory had become such a dependable friend that he couldn't even remember what living felt like before the Irish boy… Okay, maybe that was a bit extreme, but the point still stood – Rory Flanagan was quickly becoming one of his best friends. He couldn't remember a time he'd been this content in life since before Blaine… Since before Blaine died. Sam stopped for a second as he remembered his boyfriend. He had tried not to think about the boy in a while, not so much because he wanted to erase his past lover from his memory, but more because of the fact he wasn't yet able to look back on his memories with the boy with fondness. Instead, he would just feel himself being torn apart with grief. What he had needed, was a distraction – and that's exactly what Rory brought to his life. He was just one of those people that could brighten your mood just by being around you. Maybe it was his smile, or maybe it was his accent. Whatever it was, it made Sam's day that little bit brighter. He often found himself seeking the Irish boy's company when thoughts of Blaine seeped through from the corner of his mind he'd locked them in. At present though, he wanted to think of his old boyfriend. He wanted to see if those feelings of grief that were always conjured up. He wanted to see if he could finally remember those times with a smile on his face, but as he felt a tear forming in his eyes, he knew. It wasn't time yet, but maybe soon. Something deep down… Something told him. It would be better soon.

"Sam? Are you okay?" An Irish accent snapped the blond out of his daydream. He realised the tear was still rolling down his cheek – something that Rory had evidently also noticed, as he ran his thumb over where the drop of liquid was leaving it's tracks. "All better." The boy winked at Sam as he turned away. He really wanted to tell Rory about Blaine, but, one of the main things he liked about spending time with Rory was the fact he didn't have to constantly reassure the boy that he was okay. Blaine was an unknown – something that wasn't ever brought up in conversation, he couldn't be, but more than that, the relationship offered Sam an escape from those memories. Of all his friends, Rory was the only one who hadn't met the dead boyfriend, and that immediately marked him out from the others. Immediately, he had something unique from the rest, had something that none of the others possessed – a distance from last year's events. "So Sam, what do you think about Invitationals?" Rory was there again. Ready to pull him out of the distant world he didn't realise he was slipping into. Although the boy didn't know what was wrong, he didn't want to see Sam sad – and that meant the world to the blond.

"I don't really know. I mean, it's not a competition like the others, it's more like a showcase of what we can do – although our competition will probably come to check us out, especially seeing as we went to Nationals last year." Rory had been pretty nervous about the event since Mr. Schue had mentioned it earlier on in the week – it would be his first time performing in front of a large audience, and he really didn't want to muck up. What if he forgot the words? What if he forgot where his feet needed to be? Schue had been going on and on about how important this performance would be in earning the group benefactors. They needed financial support to buy costumes, to afford lighting, to cover the travel costs. Normally they would take part in fundraising, but as part of Schue's drive for perfection this year, he had decided that the club should spend all of it's time on practices, and not on the more menial parts of the prep that the faculty should probably look after. This was why he had taken to looking for a benefactor for the group – financial support would be vital in focusing his mind. But, as a result of the importance that Schue was placing on the showcase, Rory was shitting bricks. He couldn't remember being this nervous for performing before.

"Hey, Sam, Rory, how's the school looking after the exchange programme? Me and Mercedes meant to ask, but we forgot." Tina smiled sweetly at the pair. Gosh, those two girls were so obvious to read. They had become really good friends with Rory and Sam in the last week, but they were still trying to get as much info as possible out of the two boys. Rory was amused at how he had been so quickly assumed into the life of the pair. Never before, with the exception of Sam, had he been welcomed quite so quickly and easily. Sure, they didn't know about him being gay, but knowing that they were really good friends with Kurt, and seeing the way they were around Sam, it showed him that they probably wouldn't mind. Oh yeah, they'd asked a question. A question that either him or Sam needed to answer. Maybe he should take the lead for once…

"Well, they sent a guy to speak to us… Um… Oh gosh, what's his name? Um… Mr… Mr Drewe! Yes, that's it, Mr Drewe! Yeah, he came to have a chat with us at the beginning of term, and he said he would meet up with us roughly once a month. Just to see how things are going." In truth, he wasn't sure how likely that was to work out – especially after seeing how much of a fail the man was at organisation. He would probably turn up on a Saturday, expecting the school to be open, and expecting Sam and Rory to just be there. He wondered if there was any way for him to switch his supervisor with another teacher.

"Oh, well that's cool. And what about your parents Rory? They must be missing you." Mercedes smiled at Rory, showing sympathy at him being so far away from his family. In truth, Rory wasn't sure if they really missed him at all. They hadn't called once since he'd left home, and even though he knew they didn't like him (that was obvious from the way they… never mind), he thought that they still loved him. Maybe they really didn't care about him at all. He nodded at Mercedes' comment. It was all he could muster when it came to issues with his family. What he didn't realise, was that from where he stood, Sam could see the cold, dead sadness in his eyes. Normally, he would have put it down to someone in Rory's position being homesick, but he had a feeling that wasn't it. So what was it? What was Rory hiding? Sam knew that the boy hadn't spoken to them since he arrived in America – another thing which made him concerned about the exchange's relationship with his family. He would really have to start fitting the pieces together, otherwise he'd never get to the bottom of the issue. Something just wasn't right there. The four gleeks continued to walk through the halls, turning a corner. They were met by a group of hockey players, all with smug smiles on their faces. The two at the ends of the group pulled out slushies from behind their backs, which they wasted no time in throwing at Sam, Tina and Mercedes. Some of the liquid splashed onto Rory. He wondered why they had avoided hitting him with the cold substance. That was when it hit. The other five members all pulled out green slushies, which they poured over the boy.

"We got green. Especially for you, our favourite faggy leprechaun." Sam saw red. Not only had they insulted his friend, and also him by using that term, but they had also victimised Rory to an extent beyond what he and the girls had received. They had planned to humiliate Rory to the extreme, and that just wasn't on. He'd only had one slushie thrown at him by the group, but Rory… Rory had been hit with five. Five. The green drink was working its way down his clothes, and as it did, Rory shivered. That was it. Sam spun around, and jumped on the back of one of the players. They weren't going to get away with this. As the boy fell to the ground, Sam lifted his arm, punching the boy's arm with his full force. As another of the players grabbed Sam and picked him up, the blond kicked the sportsman in the shin, resulting in him immediately being dropped. By now, the rest of the team had formed a circle around the fighting boys, and they seemed to be closing in on Sam. Until a voice rang through the hallway. The voice of one Coach Beiste.

"You maggots get yourselves away right now! Leave that boy alone!" As she started to walk towards them, the group dissipated, mumbles filling the air. One of them however, wasn't ready to end it just yet. He turned his head around and glared at Sam, and then at Rory.

"You dirty fags. Keep your fucked up relationship out of our faces. We don't want that kind of crap here. We had it bad enough before, but at least Anderson was an American fag, and not some kind of dirty Irish pixie". A hand clamped on his shoulder, and Beiste glared at the boy. She didn't even have to speak as she looked at the gleeks to check they were alright before leading the boy to the principal's office. Enough was enough as far as she was concerned. Rory was definitely the most upset by the situation. That made sense, seeing as the boy's harsh words had been directly addressed to him.

"Rory, just ignore them. It doesn't matter what they think, they're a load of dicks". Sam put his arm around Rory's soaked shoulder. The boy needed comfort, and Sam could provide that. "I don't know why they think we're going out, they just say things like that to hurt us. Finn gets called fag loads as well. All the guys do, it isn't just you". He smiled at the Irish boy, hoping to see a smile back, which he did. From their position to the side, the girls looked on at the scene. Sam… He looked… Loving. He was looking at Rory with the eyes he had previously reserved for Blaine. They wondered if Rory knew about Sam's previous boyfriend. It wasn't up to them to inform the boy. That was up to Sam or Rachel. They looked to Rory, and then at each other. If Sam didn't have feelings for the boy now, he was obviously headed that way soon. They needed to get to the bottom of this. Their attention turned back to Rory, who was still stood there. He was evidently taken aback by the events. What had he done to provoke that kind of attack? Who was Anderson? Nobody had mentioned him before… He looked up at his friends.

"Maybe we should head to the changing rooms. We can get into some drier clothes there". Sam and the two girls nodded. They were all getting a chill stood there in wet clothes.

* * *

"Guys, I have an idea. We've been looking for a song to sing at Invitationals, and the 'attack' we were greeted with earlier has given me a couple of ideas. Well, an idea." Tina smiled as she addressed the three others. They were all in dry clothes now, and although their hair was still wet, they were a lot more comfortable than they were before. She had actually had this idea floating around in her head for a while now, but it had never been the right time to use it. Now however, now seemed opportune. It was the kind of song that a lot of people could relate to – which meant it was a crowd pleaser, something that Mr. Schue had been searching for in the last week. She had a feeling that the glee club would love it, but she wanted to give Mercedes, Rory and Sam a heads up first. "I want us to perform 'Strip Me' by Natasha Bedingfield. I think it says everything I want to say to those gits who slushied us earlier. It could become an anthem for the club. I really think we should try it out for Mr. Schue. Sam nodded at the idea. He had only heard the song a couple of times, but he had liked it when it was played. He'd want a little time to try and rehearse though. There was no way he was going to be ready to perform for glee today.

"Ti, I think, me, Sam and Rory, maybe we could have some time to practice it before we show the club? I want to make sure we get it right, and I'm not all that familiar with the song. Maybe we could all meet up tonight and perform it tomorrow?" Sam couldn't believe it. Mercedes had pretty much said exactly how he felt. Tina smiled and nodded at the idea, telling them to all come to her place after glee. She was obviously excited – it was the first time that one of her ideas had been taken seriously, so her head was full of ideas for choreography. As the group headed towards the choir room, she rambled on about all the ideas that were flowing through her head. Mercedes and Rory listened intently, but Sam was distracted again, living in his own head. What had Rory done to deserve that shit from those dicks? Nothing, that's what. And not only had they been homophobic, they had also been racist to the Irish boy. It just wasn't on. He had already been sad about his parents, and then that happened. His parents. What was going on there? It was obviously a touchy subject, and also clearly a very emotional one. Sam knew he needed to help Rory. He needed to understand him more. He needed… Forget it. It could wait. For now, it was glee. He looked over and saw Tina had gone to speak to Mr. Schue. She was gesticulating at the three members of her planned group, and Mr. Schue seemed pretty taken with the idea. She came over to her friends, beaming.

"We have until tomorrow to rehearse. Apparently we can head off now!" Tina grabbed Mercedes' and Rory's hands, dragging them out of the choir room. Sam followed behind, laughing at the sight of the small girl, literally dragging her friends through the school.

* * *

Rory tried to breathe slowly as he stood behind the curtains in the McKinley High theatre. When he had said he would be a part of Tina's group, he hadn't planned on being offered a solo in the song, along with the other three members of his group. Really, it was only fair, seeing as they had choreographed and come up with the idea, but he couldn't help wishing slightly that somebody else had been given his part. Of course, he was ecstatic that the group trusted him enough to let him sing in front of the audience, but it didn't change the fact that he was terrified. Sam had actually hit him with a pillow the night before, in an attempt to calm down the panicking boy. Of course, Rory felt the need to retaliate, so they'd ended up having a pillow fight, but Sam's work was done. He had been calmer after that. Now though, stood behind these curtains, he felt like a guilty man on death row. He was actually that nervous. He heard the music start, and Sam and the two girls ran into place beside him, all giving each other comforting glances. The curtains began to move open, and the light flooded the stage. It was time. Tina would be the first to sing.

_Everyday I fight for all my future somethings,_

_A thousand little wars I have to choose between, _

_I could spend a lifetime earning things I don't need, _

_That's like chasing rainbows and coming home empty._

The evening at Tina's had been a lot of fun. Sure, it was hard work going over choreography again and again to drill it into their heads, but he was surrounded by people he liked, and that made it enjoyable beyond words. He had missed this kind of friendship back home. Here, things were different. Things were happy. Things were a world away from the dark and gloom of Ireland. In his home, where that song lived on his iPod, just in case anybody would ever need to make use of it. That song. The thought of it made the skin on the back of his neck crawl. What it would be used for. What he had planned it for. It didn't bear thinking about. Not now, when he was with friends. There was a time and a place, and this wasn't it. He felt the sweat beading at his forehead, and he excused himself to get a drink. Rory Flanagan, sort yourself out. His words whispered through his head as the cool water trickled down his throat.

_And if you strip me, strip it all away,_

_If you strip me, what would you find, _

_If you strip me, strip it all away,_

_I'll be alright._

As soon as Rory had left the room, the two girls turned on Sam. They wanted info pronto. Their inquisitive eyes met Sam's puzzled ones, and before he could speak, they blurted out their question. Did he have feelings for Rory? He didn't know. He couldn't answer that question could he? Of course he felt things for the boy, they were good friends. But it was obvious that wasn't what they meant. They wanted to know about romance. About romantic feelings. And did he have them for the boy? He couldn't say. He honestly didn't know. Even if he did, wouldn't it be betraying Blaine? Wouldn't it be saying that Blaine was no longer a part of him? He wasn't ready for that stance yet. Blaine would always be a part of him. Always. But could he have had feelings for Rory as well? Wait. They didn't know Rory was gay. So were they just asking out of curiosity, or where they assuming that the Irish boy was like him? What if Rory didn't want them to know he was gay? He knew what he had to do. And so, he opened his mouth to answer the pair.

"Even if I did, it wouldn't make any difference." Sam stared, realizing what that sounded like. It sounded like he was saying 'yes, I do have feelings for him'. But he couldn't change what he said now. Maybe he did have feelings for him, and that was his mind's way of telling him. Maybe he was just overthinking things…

_Take what you want steal my pride, _

_Build me up or cut me down to size, _

_Shut me out but I'll just scream,_

_I'm only one voice in a million, _

_But you ain't taking that from me,_

_You ain't taking that from me,_

_You ain't taking that from me,_

_You ain't taking that from me,_

_You ain't taking that!_

Rory walked back into the room, and when Sam looked at him, he felt even more confused and betrayed by his heart. He felt a fondness for the boy, a fondness he shouldn't feel. Not yet. Blaine… He had to take a break for a minute. Get some space. He quickly excused himself, and the girls gave each other a knowing look. They then walked up to Rory. It was his turn for a question. They didn't want to come on too strong, seeing as they hadn't been friends too long, so they chose to opt for only one question for now. The big one. The one that had been on their minds for a while now.

"Rory, are you gay?" The bluntness of the question hit him like a brick. The memories it brought back to him. The rejection, the pain. He couldn't deal with that. Not again. Not after… Not after home. He had been so hurt in the past. And now here he was, facing another opportunity for that pain to resurface. He tried to calm himself down, remembering what he had told himself earlier. How they must be fine with it, considering they were such good friends with both Sam and Kurt. He took a deep breath, and gulped. He nodded at them, an action that was met with smiles and hugs. Now they just needed to figure out a way to get Rory and Sam together. Sure they could be manipulative, but they were pretty sure it was a mandatory personality trait if you wanted to take part in glee.

_I don't need a microphone yeah, _

_To say what I've been thinking,_

_My heart is like a loudspeaker,_

_That's always on eleven._

As Rory began his solo on stage, his nerves were left in the dust by the excitement he felt. Tina and Mercedes had really excited the audience, so they were pretty much putty in the boys' hands. All they needed to do was not muck up, and then it would all go according to plan, and be amazing. Rory looked over to Sam for support. His big note was coming up, and he had been having trouble reaching it sometimes. He really wanted to hit it now. And he did. The four gleeks closed up on stage, arms around each other as the song continued. Rory felt Sam pat his back to congratulate him for that note. Shit it was a good note. Sam couldn't get over how Rory's voice was so versatile. He could do the high octaves, but unlike Kurt, he could also manage much lower pitches. He could handle almost anything thrown his way. Like the guy version of Rachel. Sam, if he was honest, felt a strong sense of pride as he thought of Rory giving Finn a run for his money as male lead of the group. Rachel might not be too happy about that, but then again, she had mellowed a lot recently.

_And if you strip me, strip it all away,_

_If you strip me, what would you find, _

_If you strip me, strip it all away,_

_I'm still the same._

Sam smiled as the four left the stage after their performance. They had done such an amazing job, and the audience had responded amazingly. They got changed while the remaining New Directions took part in another number on stage. Once in their more comfortable home clothes, they snuck out into the audience to watch their friends perform. It was amazing, and they could really see the talent that formed the core of the group. Once their performance had ended, and the audience began to file out, they headed backstage again, to celebrate with their friends on such a brilliant performance. When they got there however, everyone had their ears pressed against 's door. As the quartet joined the group, they followed suit, straining to hear what was going on in the next room.

"Mr. Schuester, I am so glad that we can agree on something like this. It will be a great opportunity for your kids, but also for the underdog everywhere. They can see just how much can be done, how no obstacle is too big. But more than that, it can show people how people from such different backgrounds can come together." They door handle turned, and the gleeks quickly moved away from the door. As the man emerged, he addressed the group. "I have something to tell you all. I was extremely impressed by your performance today, and I have spoken to your teacher about getting you to come and do a performance at my charity's awareness gig. I'm from a charity called Open Arms – it's all about promoting acceptance, and I believe you kids, being from the varied backgrounds you all are, would make great ambassadors for our group. I'm going to be getting back to your teacher with more information very shortly."

_Take what you want steal my pride,_

_Build me up or cut me down to size, _

_Shut me out but I'll just scream,_

_I'm only one voice in a million, _

_But you ain't taking that from me, _

_You ain't taking that from me, _

_You ain't taking that from me, _

_You ain't taking that from me,_

_You ain't taking that!_

The gleeks all sat in groups, excitedly chatting about the event coming up. It would be great practice for Nationals, but also a great way for them to show the world that although they were the underdogs, they would also have a chance to shine. Everyone was ecstatic at the news. Rory felt that was the great thing about unexpected events – they had a way of having such a strong impact on emotions that planned moments just couldn't recreate. There was something about the spontaneity, and the effect it had on the human psyche. He looked over at Sam, who was yawning. Maybe it was time for them to leave. He mouthed to the boy he was going to wait outside, next to the car. Sam smiled and said he'd be out in five. Rory grinned to himself. There was something so homely about the scene. It sent warmth coursing through his veins. A warmth he hadn't felt in such a long time.

_Cause when it all boils down at the end of the day,_

_It's what you do and say that makes you who you are,_

_Makes you think about, think about it doesn't it?_

_Sometimes all it takes is one voice._

Rory stood next to the car, waiting for Sam to arrive. He heard the footsteps behind him, and he turned around, assuming it would be his friend. Instead, he was met with the sharp eyes of Rob, the hockey player from the other day. His friends stood a little ways back from him. An evil grin was plastered over his face, and it sent chills running down Rory's spine. He was scared now. This moment, it reminded him of Ireland. Of home. He shivered, but he knew it wasn't from the cold. It was fear. Fear that something bad was about to happen. And something bad did happen. He felt the kick to the shin, and he landed on the floor. Rob grabbed the Irish boy's hand, and pulled a knife out of his pocket. His eyes glinted coolly in the moonlight, and he pressed the sharp end into Rory's palm. The boy cried out in pain as the knife cut through his skin. Rob just continued to pull the knife across the hand in front of him, watching as the blood ran out. Once he felt the cut was deep enough and long enough, he repeated the action on the other hand, then, before leaving, he spat on the ground in front of Rory. The Irish boy whimpered at the action. He was so terrified, and his palms hurt so much. They hurt so much. His mum. Before any of the problems started, before his father… She would've held him. She would've made it better. But now, it was just empty air that surrounded him.

_Take what you want steal my pride,_

_Build me up or cut me down to size,_

_Shut me out but I'll just scream,_

_I'm only one voice in a million,_

_But you ain't taking that from me,_

_You ain't taking that from me,_

_You ain't taking that from me,_

_You ain't taking that from me,_

_You ain't taking that!_

Sam walked towards his car, but as he did, he spotted somebody slumped against the door, holding their hands together. Could it be? Rory! Sam ran over to the boy, who was crying like there was no tomorrow. Tears cascaded down his cheeks, and he held his hands close to his chest. Sam noticed the warm wetness as he pulled Rory into his arms. He pulled out his phone to shine a light onto the scene in front of him. Rory's pale skin, normally so beautiful, was covered in blood. What the fuck had happened? He pulled the boy's hands gently open, and had to blink to make sure he was seeing right. Somebody had slashed his hands! Who the fuck had done that? Sam looked around, before realizing that finding the culprit wasn't the most important thing right now. He needed to get Rory home. He needed to make the boy safe.

* * *

**There it is. I hope you liked the chapter. It really was a pretty tough one to write - normally I write a chapter in about three hours (I have plans made before that) but this one... I've been writing this for about eight or nine hours now... Urgh I'm tired xD Anyway, I hope you liked it, and please review and let me know!**


	10. Arrival: Bully

**Author's Note: Finally, the new chapter is ready for you all. I know its been quite a long time, and I know that I left the story on a bit of a cliffhanger, but hopefully we can all look past that. ;) Anyway, I thought that for a change, I would have this chapter follow on directly from where the last chapter left off. I think that way we won't miss any important developments in the story. Once again, I'm sorry that I have taken my sweet time to upload, but I just couldn't bring myself to write for a little while, and I wanted to try and make sure that what I produced was of as high a quality as I could produce. Here we go, on with Arrival: Bully.**

* * *

Sam fumbled with his keys under the dim glow of the porch light. It was always the way – he can never find the right one when he needs to most. He managed to finally grab the key, shoving it into the lock, and barging the door open. Running back towards the car to collect Rory, he shouted for his parents to come quickly. His hands clawed at the door handle, yanking it open as he pulled Rory out of the car, before putting his arm round him, leading him quickly but gently into the house. His parents entered the hallway as the pair walked through the door, and immediately they could see that Rory was hurt – the blood that had now stained his sleeves and their son's shirt was evidence of that. Mary and Dwight looked at each other in panic, before proceeding to take control of the situation. Sam was taken into the living room by his father, while his mother hurried Rory into the kitchen. She needed to tend to his wounds, find out how deep his injuries were. Would he need to go to hospital? Sam was visibly upset as Dwight sat him down on the sofa, and although he wanted desperately to let his son be with Rory, he needed to find out what had happened. He knelt on the floor in front of the shaking teen, and looked up into his eyes. There was something… more in there. It wasn't just empathy for his friend's situation, but deep anger and sadness were thrown into the mix. It was almost too much for Dwight to take in, and for a couple of seconds, he almost wished he had taken Rory and left Sam to his wife. But that had happened, and anyway, Rory was in much more of a state, and he was never that amazing with emotions like Sam's mother was. She was just able to read people in a way that he never could. It was one of the things he loved so dearly about her. But thoughts of his wife could wait until later. His focus for the moment had to be on the two boys. What had happened?

"Sam. Sam. I need you to calm down. I need to know what happened to Rory. Sam. Sam you need to tell me." It almost seemed as if the boy had shut down completely – taking in none of what Dwight was saying to him. There had only been one time before that this had happened – in the hospital with Blaine. Whatever had happened to Rory, it was making Sam relive those memories. "Sam, son. Rory's going to be okay. I promise. Your mother is just looking after him now. There's no need to panic." For the first time in a long time, he actually saw Sam's composure snap in front of him. Anger was pouring out, tinged with regret.

"What do you mean don't worry? It was my job to look after Rory, and I couldn't even do that. Did you even see him? That's my fault! I didn't look after him like I should have, and it's killing me. I never look after people like I'm supposed to. I never do a good enough job. Why? Why dad? Why can't I just keep you all safe?" Sam's original tirade of shouting had subdued into hushed whimpers as his father sat there holding his hands together. The word 'why' being constantly repeated – a mantra that would inevitably lead to more self-blame. These thoughts definitely stemmed back from Blaine's accident. That much was clear to Dwight, both as a man, but also as a father. These feelings of guilt were partially caused by what had happened earlier in the evening, but they had evidently been bubbling under the surface for a while, tucked into the corners of his mind. In the hollowed, dark places that sat in his mind – presumably the same places he kept his memories of Blaine, but Dwight could only guess when it came to that front.

"Sam, I really need you to tell me what happened. It's not your fault, I can tell you that, but if you really want to help Rory, you need to tell me what happened." Dwight's older, more calloused hands gently ran up and down the ones of his son, attempting to soothe the boy. He saw the blonde take a deep breath, close his eyes and count to ten. It was one of the calming tactics his parents had taught him to overcome the panic attacks that had developed after the accident. In a way, it was nice to see that Sam had taken on board what he had been taught, but on the other hand, seeing him at a point where he felt he needed to use it was a little frightening.

"I don't know. I just… I came out of the school to go to the car, and when I arrived, I saw Rory sitting on the floor, holding his hands like… And there was so much blood… It was just pouring out of his palms and I tried to see if anyone was there, but I couldn't find anyone. I just thought it was best to get him here as quickly as I could." Sam's eyes were flittering about the place, the tension of wanting to find out what had happened obviously putting him on edge. Dwight sighed. In a way, it explained why Sam was finding this incident so difficult to deal with – he was just as in the dark as they were. The only person that actually knew what had happened was Rory, and he might not be in a fit state to divulge the information that they so badly needed. Hopefully Mary would give it a go though.

* * *

She dabbed his hand with a damp cloth, wiping the dried blood away from the cuts. They were definitely deep, but luckily they weren't near to any major arteries or veins. They would take a while to heal, but at least there had been no major damage. Mary grabbed an anti-septic wipe from her first-aid kit before glancing up at Rory. He nodded back. There was a moment of understanding there – they both knew that the wipes were going to sting like hell, but it was a pain he would have to suffer through. He closed his eyes and hummed to himself, hoping to create a distraction, but nothing could prepare him for the stinging feeling of the wipe passing over his palms. He was actually vibrating in pain, and his eyes began to water. She couldn't believe she had to put the poor boy through this extra pain, especially after what he'd already been through. After wiping both hands clean, she reached for her bandages, wrapping them around his palms. She patted them after pinning the ends down so that they would fall off, and looked up at the boy in front of her.

"Rory, can you tell me what happened dear?" Rory paled at the thought of having to relive the memory, but he knew that in order for the family to put a stop to this happening, he would need to spill, so, although his body screamed for him to close off the memory and hide it away like he had done that time with his parents, he nodded his head, indicated he would inform his exchange-parents of what had happened. Mary led the boy to the kitchen table, and she sat opposite him, holding his hands as she gestured for him to start.

"Well, it was after the performance. I thought that I could wait outside of the car for Sam, because the dressing rooms were getting really stuffy from all the people inside. I waited, but then I heard footsteps… And… And… I thought it was going to be Sam, but it was this guy called Rob, and he kicked me in the shin, and I… I fell over, and then he gr-grabbed my hands and pulled out the knife and he ran it over them. I don't really remember what came next, apart from Sam… He just ran over and found me on the floor. I'm sure I probably deserved it, but, I don't understand… What I… did to them." Mary had a tear in her eye as she listened to the boy's account of what happened. She couldn't believe that he thought he might have done something wrong to them. What kind of background did he have? How could he have thought that maybe he had done something wrong? That was actually the scariest thing about the whole story – he felt like he deserved what had happened. The boy in front of her broke down, heavy sobs making his whole body shake. She went around and placed her arm around his back, hoping to comfort him.

"Shh, you're safe. Nobody's going to hurt you here honey. You're like another child to us. It hasn't taken long, but already I feel like I'm a mother to you. Shh. Shh." She stroked his back, hoping to soothe the boy, but at the mention of his mother, the tears intensified. Maybe she shouldn't have mentioned home – he was probably feeling homesick enough already.

The sounds of Rory's tears had now filtered through into the living room, where Sam was sat with his father. He jumped up as soon as he heard the sobbing get louder, and he ran into the kitchen to see his mother trying to comfort the drained boy. The blonde teen indicated for his mother to let him have some time with Rory, and the woman nodded. Maybe Sam could cheer him up. She left to talk with her husband in the living room as Sam moved towards his friend, pulling him onto the floor with him. It would be easier to hold him here. His arms wrapped themselves around Rory's shaking body, and he held on tightly, just like he had done after they gave up on Blaine in the hospital. Rory's hand wrapped around Sam's shoulders as he clung on, almost afraid that if he let go, he would fall into oblivion. Sam had become the rock that was keeping him safe, and if he let go, they might hurt him again. The blond boy began humming gently into Rory's ear, running his hand along the Irish boy's back like his mother had done earlier, hoping to calm him down. It didn't take long for Rory's tears to become softer whimpers, echoes of the pain that there once was. His body stopped shaking, and he began to take deep breaths. Sam could feel the boy's muscles relaxing underneath him, and took it as the sign that Rory was feeling better. The kitchen door opened, and his parents wandered through, a serious look on their faces.

"Boys, we can't let this just go by. An incident like this, its serious stuff. Rory knows his attacker, so we're going to speak to the principle tomorrow morning. Figgins isn't it? Anyway, tomorrow morning, the four of us will be going to have a conversation with him, Mr. Schuester and Miss Pillsbury. We think it's best that those two teachers, who have the most involvement with the pair of you as students are present at the meeting." Sam nodded in agreement. It made sense to him, plus, he wanted to make sure that the fuckers responsible would be made to pay for what they had done. He was pretty sure that they could be arrested for what had happened. Of course, he wasn't going to push for that, but it might be a good bargaining tool, and when it came to the safety of his loved ones, Sam didn't accept lame-ass apologies.

* * *

Principal Figgins looked from one Evans parent, to the other, before looking over to Rory and Sam. Then down to Rory's bandage-wrapped hands. His eyes flitted towards Mr. Schue, before taking the time to glance at Miss Pillsbury. In looking around the room, he had given himself enough time to let the information he had just been given sink in. Everyone had a grim expression painted on their faces, almost as if to make it clear to Figgins that he hadn't misheard. He was stunned. Sure, he knew there was a bullying problem in McKinley, especially directed towards the glee club, and he knew he had slacked off when it came to sorting it out, but he had never suspected his negligence could lead to an incident this severe. The circumstances were even more dire when taking into consideration the fact that the victim in this instance wasn't even an actual full-time student at the school, what with him being an exchange visitor. Sam Evans had an incredibly angry look about him, and Figgins could understand why. In the eyes of the gleeks, he, the principle, was just as much to blame as the bullies themselves. And in a way, they were right – for too long he had just sat by and given weak excuses for why he didn't need to change anything at the school. For too long, he had sent out the wrong message – the message that bullying was acceptable at William McKinley High School. Things were going to have to change now. That much was obvious. If only because of the pressure that would be placed on the school thanks to the school boards. Undoubtedly, they would be sending inspectors as soon as word of the incident got out. There was no way for Figgins to keep the whole thing quiet. All it would take is for one person to know, and suddenly the school boards would be after his head. He needed to act severely and swiftly now.

"Miss Pillsbury, once this meeting is over, could you go and grab Rob from his class please. After Coach Beiste reprimanded him the other day, I thought he might try and keep a low profile. Evidently not. And this… This is far too serious for him to get away with – he will have to be expelled. Now I could get the police involved, but I think that it is probably best for all if we keep them out of it – it would bring more attention to Rory and Sam, but it would also mean that Rob's long-term future will be severely affected, and though I know his future isn't likely to be high up in any of your interests, as his principle, I feel like I am a little responsible for him." Rory nodded. Although he wanted to see his attacker punished, he didn't want to completely ruin all of his chances. Miss Pillsbury hurried out of the room, leaving the rest of them behind. "Mr and Mrs Evans, I think that I have all I need from the pair of you, so unless there is anything else you want to speak to me about, I was hoping I could speak to the boys and Mr. Schuester alone for a couple of minutes." The couple nodded and left to wait in the lobby. In a way, they felt a little shunned not being included in whatever the group was now discussing, but they could also understand that maybe there were a couple of other issues that they as parents didn't necessarily need to know about. They sat down on the chairs provided, and cast their eyes towards the principle's office. "Right boys, Mr. Schuester, I think that this bullying problem has finally reached a head. Something needs to be done, so from now on, this school will have a much stronger disciplinary scheme, which I will discuss with the faculty at a later date, but in the meantime, I first would appreciate it if your glee club took part in a performance to raise awareness for the issue at McKinley. I would like to see maybe a few speeches, but more importantly, I would also like to see a musical number that can really speak to these kids. I think letting the student body at large get a better grasp on the situation could help us improve the standard of life here at WMHS." Mr. Schue nodded. As the bottom-tier students of the school, the gleeks had suffered more than their fair share of abuse, so it was only right for them to be the figureheads leading the way in raising awareness of bullying at William McKinley, and he actually had the perfect song in mind. Sam and Rory seemed a little less convinced.

"Excuse me Principle Figgins, but I think that although a valiant and noble effort, 'raising awareness' is actually going to do very little. Every student here at this school knows about the issues, heck, most of them have been a victim of bullying at some point. What I'm trying to say is this – people are aware, they just choose not to do anything about it. Turning a blind eye is a hell of a lot easier than standing up to the jocks." Sam's eyes had a steely glint to them. It was clear that he wanted to see some actual changes in the school, as opposed to the token gesture that Figgins seemed to be offering. What was so difficult for the man to understand? A strong, zero-tolerance attitude towards bullying would be a significant step towards change. Holding a little concert to 'raise awareness' was nothing of the sort. If anything, it just seemed like a move to a) make the school boards think that WMHS takes bullying seriously, and b) although unintended, it would inevitably lead to more scorn for the members of the glee club.

"Mr. Evans, I can completely understand where you are coming from, but I, as principle, cannot introduce completely new measures without holding a meeting with the faculty first. My power is limited, so for now, look at the concert as a step in the right direction whilst the bigger schemes are being worked on behind the scenes". Mr. Schue looked over at Sam, looking for a reaction to Figgins' words. He still didn't look particularly happy.

"Sam, Rory. I think Principle Figgins is onto a good idea. I can understand what you're saying, but I genuinely think that the concert will help a little. Especially if we maybe have some of you talk about incidents in the past, where you've been victims of bullying. I think that we should give it a go." Sam looked from Mr. Schue to Rory and back again. Rory seemed to be thinking over everything that had been said before looking over too Sam and shrugging his shoulders. Maybe it was worth a go. "I think maybe we should perform Lady GaGa's 'Hair' and also feature some videos of the gleeks talking to camera about some of the issues they've dealt with in the past." Sam had to admit, that did sound like a good idea. "What's more, with the furore that's going to be surrounding this incident, I think the best idea would be for us to feature Sam and Rory as our lead singers." Okay, this was sounding a little risky now. But still a good idea right? Sam looked over to Rory, who looked a little worried, before nodding. If he had the strength to say yes, so did Sam. "Right, I'll tell the others. You two can go home for the day I think. Have a chance to recuperate. Just make sure you go over the lyrics for Hair. Rory, you'll be singing first verse, Sam, you the second. I'm not going to do any elaborate choreography so make sure you get those words down and you'll be ready for the presentation." The boys stood up, thanking Mr. Schue and Figgins for their time, before heading out to inform Sam's parents that they'd been given the day off.

* * *

Sam and Rory sat in their shared room after putting the children to bed. The day, although void of lessons, had been a tiring one for both of them, and they were ready to slip into their nightwear. Sam booted up a film for them to watch together, and he settled down. He looked over to Rory, who was fiddling with his bandages. It occurred to Sam that, when facing facts, Rory had actually had a pretty shit time in America so far.

"Rory, do you wish you had never left Ireland?" Rory was a little stunned at the question – it seemed to come out of nowhere. He looked over at Sam, who was sat there expectantly. A lot had happened in his short time in the country, but there was no way he would've wanted to stay in Ireland. Not with his parents. He shook his head. Sam looked a little surprised at the response. "But so much has happened to you. Like, I wouldn't be able to cope being this far away from my parents and then have all this shit happen to me. I don't know how you do it. Like don't you wish you had your parents nearby?" Sam noticed Rory flinch again at the mention of his parents. This had happened too many times to just be a coincidence, but there was no way that he could bring it up. It was something that Rory would need to share. Of course, only if he wanted to, and at the moment, he obviously didn't want to.

"I don't really miss home that much. Things in America have been keeping me busy, but I at the moment, I think I might apply to stay here to study until the end of high school at least." Sam was shocked to hear that. He thought that Rory would be desperate to get back out of the country, even if things weren't too great at home, he probably hadn't had his palms slashed. "I mean, only if I can find somewhere to stay of course." Sam looked at the boy in front of him, who seemed to be so worried about his future. His eyes seemed older than they should, like they had seen things nobody Rory's age should've seen, but at the same time, they had a youthful energy to them, the light dancing around the brilliant blue iris. They were deep – his eyes. They seemed to hold bountiful secrets and memories, and it made them shimmer. The blue became lighter towards the pupil, which fascinated Sam. It wasn't that unusual, but he couldn't take his eyes of those of the other boy. Before he knew it, he had lost sight of them, and his world was closed in black as he moved towards Rory, his hand grabbing the other boy's chin before pressing his lips onto the Irish boy's. His eyes closed through the whole experience. The pair pulled away, and Sam reopened his eyes. Rory. Blaine. He couldn't do this. Not yet. It was evident that he had strong feelings for the Irish boy, but he just wasn't ready to move on. Rory took in Sam's face. His lips. They had felt so good. He blinked, scrunching his eyes shut before opening them again to make sure he wasn't dreaming. He wasn't. "Sam, what… What does that mean?" If he was honest, he wanted Sam to say that he wanted them to get together. It would have been a perfect way to end his first kiss.

"I'm sorry Rory. I didn't mean to. Fuck, I'm not ready yet. I can't do this yet." Rory gazed on at Sam with sympathetic eyes.

"What do you mean Sam?" He needed to know more details. Sam couldn't just leave it at that.

"It's just… the last relationship I was in, after it ended, I was hurt so badly. I can't face another one yet."

* * *

_Whenever I'm dressed cool, my parents put up a fight,_

_And if I'm hot shot, mom will cut my hair at night,_

_And in the morning I'm short of my identity,_

_I scream Mom and Dad, "Why can't I be who I wanna be?"_

_To be?_

Rory felt odd singing the lyrics. It seemed oddly fitting that he should be given the first verse of the song, but he shrugged it off as coincidence. His history could wait. For now, he needed to think about Sam. What had he meant? He had been hurt? Rory would do all he could to make sure that nobody would hurt Sam. Whoever had done that damage to the blonde must have been a right douche. Who would hurt someone as loving and caring as Sam? What if there was a way for him to prove to Sam that he wouldn't hurt him? What if he could prove that he would love him and protect him, just like the jock had done for him? Maybe then, they could get together. Once Rory had proven that he wasn't like that stupid ex.

_I just wanna be myself_

_And I want you to love me for who I am_

_I just wanna be myself_

_And I want you to know, I am my hair_

_I've had enough, this is my prayer_

_That I'll die livin' just as free as my hair_

_I've had enough, I'm not a freak_

_I just keep fightin' to stay cool on the streets_

_I've had enough, enough, enough_

_And this is my prayer, I swear_

_I'm as free as my hair_

_I am my hair_

Santana was the first to appear on the screen. She was obviously a little nervous, but she hid it well. Those who weren't close to her wouldn't be able to notice. "I know it might seem a little odd for me to be appearing on a video about bullying, but even I, HBIC of WMHS have been a victim. Mainly for two reasons. The first, and the main cause of my suffering when I was a bit younger, was because I was Latina. It sounds stupid, but people would constantly tell me I didn't belong. I used to have people shout 'what the hell are you? Black or white?' at me. Now, that doesn't me, but the bullying has changed. Now it's because of my relationship with Brittany. The number of guys who have actually come to me and said that I just hadn't been with the right guy yet, or that they would straighten me out… Urgh. Basics, it's gotta stop. Santana out."

_Sometimes I some raccoon or red highlights,_

_Just because I want my friends to think I'm dynamite,_

_And on Friday, Rock City High school dance,_

_I got my bangs to hide that I don't stand a chance, a chance._

Sam was pretty happy with his verse. The idea of a tough exterior to hide a softer interior was probably more Santana than him, but at least he could relate the message to the audience. Sometimes, even the 'strongest' of people can have a tough time. He knew for a fact that Santana had struggled a little after coming out – her famed tough outer shell seemingly shattered by the comments that had been thrown her way. A lot of guys actually objectified her now – she was less a woman than the others. She was a lesbian, she didn't have feelings. The thing that annoyed Sam the most? Most of the guys who insulted her and told her that homosexuality was wrong would jack off to lesbian porn in their rooms by night. It disgusted him how that kind of behavior was allowed in this day and age. Homophobia generally. In a way though, he felt a little guilty thinking about Santana. It sounded cruel, that he should feel guilty for that, but he knew he should be taking the time to consider Rory. Especially after the kiss. He had to sort that out.

_I just wanna be myself,_

_And I want you to love me for who I am,_

_I just wanna be myself,_

_And I want you to know, I am my hair._

Mercedes stepped onto the screen. "You wanna know what I was, and am, bullied for? Being fat. People all over, they look at me, and sometimes they just whisper to their friends. They say, look how fat that girl over there is. Sometimes they come up and say it to my face – hey fatty, how's it going. Well you know what? It's my body. It's not yours, and if you don't find it hot, sucks for you. But you don't have to share your disgust with me. Just keep it to yourself. If you find someone ugly, keep it to yourself. Nobody needs to know."

_I just want to be free, I just want to be me,_

_And I want lots of friends that invite me to their parties,_

_Don't wanna change, and I don't wanna be ashamed,_

_I'm the spirit of my hair, it's all the glory that I bare._

Sam looked around at the group as they hurried off stage. They had done a great job. Hopefully the speeches would drive home the point. He caught Rory's eye as they moved into the changing rooms, but the pair just looked back down at the ground. Sam didn't know what to say. He knew he had feelings for Rory, but it would be betraying Blaine for him to give this new relationship a go.

* * *

**So, I really hope you liked that chapter! Chapter Eleven might be a little while away, because I'm going on holiday at the end of the week, but you never know, I might finish it in time. Of course, I might not... So I'm afraid there are no promises. Anyway, thanks for reading, and let me know what you thought! :D**


	11. Arrival: Privacy

**Author's Note: So I've not been back from my holiday for very long, but I really wanted to get this final chapter of Arrival up. This chapter was quite an emotional one for me to write, but I have really enjoyed doing so – more than I have with recent chapters. I mean, I always enjoy it, but this one just seemed a lot more fun to get down. I think maybe it was the slight change in pace from the rest of the story so far, and maybe the more fun content. Anyway, enough of me blabbing on… On with the story! Here goes Arrival: Privacy.**

* * *

Rory looked up from his book, turning his attention towards the evening twilight that was streaming through the window that he and Sam shared. Early evening had always been his favourite time of the day – the sky painted red, yellow and pink. There was just something about it that seemed so tranquil. So peaceful. In Ireland, his favourite thing to do was to watch the sunset over the hills. He had always wanted someone to sit with him, his hand wrapped in theirs, but he knew that it was just a flight of fancy. Romance like that didn't happen for gay people in his neighbourhood. He never quite understood why the locals disliked the idea of homosexuality so much, but that wasn't important right now. What was of vital importance, was what he should do about Sam. How could he convince the boy that he would never hurt him like the boy before him had? How could that boy have hurt Sam so much? What had he done? Rory felt his nails digging into his palms as he thought of what that douche had done to hurt the boy that he loved. Yeah, he loved Sam. They hadn't known each other for particularly long, but he was just one of those people that Rory felt an immediate connection with. He was intensely likeable, and so kind. And then there was that kiss. Rory's first kiss. It was amazing, but then Sam had been so worried. So scared of what might happen. He was probably scared that Rory would behave like the boyfriend that came before him. That had to be it right? That boy must've done something so terrible that Sam was worried that his future partners were going to do the same. Rory's heart ached at the thought. Sam, of all people, shouldn't have to deal with that kind of pain. A scar that ran deep into his heart. He was such a kind, loving, amazing person. What had he done to deserve an ex-boyfriend who was so cruel and hurt him so much? Nothing. And now Rory was left trying to figure out how to prove to the blonde boy that he wasn't like his predecessor. That he would care for Sam, that he would look after him and that he wouldn't ever need a second chance. That he would love him like he needed to be loved. That if Sam gave him a chance, he would try his hardest to give the boy the happiest times of his life. He wanted to share the smallest moments with the boy. Wanted to go for a walk through the park with him, wanted to go to a funfair with him, wanted to hug him whenever he wanted, wanted to feel his lips against his own. He wanted to go for a picnic in the summer and watch the sun set on the horizon, wanted to be able to look deep into Sam's eyes, and just say those three words – 'I love you'. He wanted to help Sam to heal. He just really, really wanted to be with him. Was that just a little too much to ask?

He turned his attention back to his homework, hoping that maybe once he'd finished his maths, he would have a clear head, and then maybe he could properly address this situation with Sam. He wondered where the boy was. Sam had said he was popping out for a little while, but didn't really mention where. Not like he would have to, but Rory found it quite odd that Sam hadn't considering he normally did. A rock song began playing on the radio, and it was just a racket that he really didn't need right now. Maths was definitely his weakest subject, and this loud nonsense really didn't help him concentrate. He clicked the button to change the station, and he found one that was playing much more gentle music - a lot of it was ballad-like pop. He looked back down at his page. It was a mess. Scribblings everywhere, but none of them brought him any closer to the answer. It was getting dark now in the room. Rory reached for the light on the bedside table, clicking the switch, and immediately the whole room was a hell of a lot brighter. He touched his pencil to the pad, but he was completely lost. This was like flogging a dead horse. Probably best to ask one of the Evanses to help. He stood up, closing his notebook in his hands, and taking his pencil with him. He reached the door before stopping. That… That was it! He rushed back towards the radio, listening to the song that was playing. How did he never think of that? That song was how he would prove that he wouldn't dream of hurting Sam. That song was the answer to one of his problems. He grabbed the computer that he and Sam both used, and booted up the internet, looking for the lyrics and sheet music to the song. It only took him ten minutes at most, if that. This music actually looked pretty simple. Maybe… Yeah, maybe that would work. Rory glanced over at Sam's guitar. Surely he wouldn't mind? No, of course not. He reached over for it and pulled it closer to him, getting himself into position. The music for the guitar version was really easy. Rory hadn't played in a long time, but maybe even his rusty skills would cope with this. It was just simple chord progression. His fingers strummed as he hummed the lyrics out. It sounded pretty decent. He looked at the clock. Maybe. It was worth a shot. He had no idea when Sam would be getting home, but if he really tried hard, he might be able to get the song into a good condition.

* * *

Sam closed his car door and his trainer met with the damp grass. There was something so cold about this place. He often wondered whether people looked for miserable places to put cemeteries, or whether it was the fact that it was a cemetery that made it miserable. He wondered through the grass towards the grave he was looking for. It was getting dark out – the sun had just gone down. He probably shouldn't have stopped to get a drink on the way here. Nor should he have spent so long looking for the perfect flowers. And there it was. Blaine Anderson. He smiled a sad smile as he saw the headstone. He knelt down in front of it, not caring if his trousers got a little muddy in the process. He carefully arranged the flowers, making sure that they looked just perfect. He felt a tear trickle down his cheek, and sadness sweep through him. It had been too long since he had last visited.

"Blaine. I don't know what to do. There's this guy. Rory. And I really like him. Really, really like him. I might even love him. But I don't think I can get involved with him, without feeling guilty. Guilty that I'm letting you go. I wish you were still here Blaine. Then I would never have to let you go. I wouldn't have any of these issues. I'm not blaming you. I'm not. I just want a sign. Something. Something to say that it's okay for me to move on. Something that says it's okay for me to love again. Blaine. I love you. But, I want to start moving on. Just give me a sign that you're okay with that. Anything. I don't care what". Sam sat there in silence for another five minutes, taking in his surroundings before heading back to his car. He really needed to get back – his family would be wondering where he was. He didn't want to panic them. He turned on the engine, pulled out of the cemetery, and turned onto the main road. Rory. How could he kiss him like that and then just say that he wasn't ready for a relationship? He must've hurt the boy quite a bit – and if he hadn't he'd probably at least confused him.

* * *

It was pitch black by the time he got back to the house. He placed his key into the latch and turned to open the door. He could hear guitar music gently in the background, almost as if someone was trying to play secretly. Nobody in the house, apart from him, could play though. That was odd. He wandered into the living room, to see his parents sitting on the couch. They both had a content smile on their faces.

"Hey, where's that music coming from?" Sam was quite curious now, and as he took his jacket off and placed his keys on the counter, he waited to hear his parents' response.

"It's coming from your room. It has been for a while now. We quite like it." Okay, this was definitely getting interesting. He went back out into the hallway. The music stopped, and Rory appeared at the top of the landing.

"Sam!" He looked shocked to see the boy, which had Sam a little confused. He did live here after all. "I was wondering if you were ever gonna get back! Can I borrow you?" Sam nodded his head, and followed Rory into their bedroom. What he saw was a little shocking to say the least. Instead of the boring old room he was used to seeing, lit by the lamp in the corner, Rory had managed to gather some candles and light the place really beautifully. He was amazed to say the least.

"But, Rory, how… Why…"

"I wanted to show you that I really want to be with you." Rory was smiling as he took in Sam's slightly shocked expression.

"But, why? And, what about…"

"Sam, you are the nicest person I've ever met. You've been so kind to me, you've cared about me, even though we haven't known each other long at all. That's why I really want to show you something." Rory grabbed the guitar, and his fingers began gently playing the melody. Luckily he had managed to memorise the simple tune just in time.

_All I know is that you're so nice,_

_You're the nicest thing I've seen,_

_I wish that we could give it a go,_

_See if we could be something._

Rory was concentrating so intently on getting the words and music right that he missed a single tear begin to form in Sam's eyes as the blond boy sat on the floor in front of the bed. Maybe this was the sign he had been looking for. Maybe he could really try going further with Rory. Maybe he could really give it a go. He looked at the boy in front of him, who had obviously spent a fair bit of time learning the music to the song he was singing. The way the guitar sat with him… It looked nice. It looked right. Rory looked right with something of Sam's. Maybe that was also a sign. A sign that they would work well together. The music and the vocals. Sam's guitar and Rory's voice. A match made in heaven. Or maybe, Sam and Rory generally. Yeah, that sounded right. Sam and Rory. Oh look, here come Sam and Rory. It sounded so right.

_I wish I was your favourite boy,_

_I wish you thought I was the reason you are in the world,_

_I wish my smile was your favourite kind of smile,_

_I wish the way that I dressed was your favourite kind of style._

This was such a beautiful song. Sam wondered whether it was big in Ireland. But really, that was only a small thought that left his mind as quickly as it entered. His thoughts were thrown right back to the boy singing the song to him as Rory began to tear up with the lyrics. Sam's heart almost broke at the sight of the tears rolling down the Irish boy's cheeks. But when Rory looked at him and smiled, he was too stunned by the boy's beauty to do anything. Rory's face was just so perfect. Beautiful. It wasn't like he had amazing cheekbones or anything, it was just such a classically beautiful face. His skin tone as well – it was a lot paler than that of most other boys Sam had seen, and it was amazing. Stunning. Just like everything about the boy.

_I wish you couldn't figure me out,_

_But you always wanna know what I was about,_

_I wish you'd hold my hand,_

_When I was upset,_

_I wish you'd never forget,_

_The look on my face when we first met._

Sam could actually really clearly remember Rory's face when they first met. He remembered the boy being nothing like he had anticipated. To be fair, he had completely pictured the stereotype Irish man, so it was really very unlikely that Rory would be anything like that. Rory was so much better. So, so much better. Sam wondered what he had done to deserve two such amazing people in his life – first Blaine, and now Rory. God he loved them both so much. Maybe that was the answer after all. Maybe he could love them both. He didn't have to give up on Blaine, because he could just love Rory as well. He wouldn't need to drive Blaine and his past out of his life. This was perfect! Sam felt himself tearing up as the song continued. Rory's voice was so beautiful.

_I wish you had a favourite beauty spot,_

_That you loved secretly,_

_'Cause it was on a hidden bit,_

_That nobody else could see,_

_Basically, I wish that you loved me,_

_I wish that you needed me,_

_I wish that you knew when I said two sugars,_

_Actually I meant three._

Sam had to stop Rory there. He couldn't take it anymore. He pushed his lips onto those of the smaller boy, and he felt him begin to kiss back. Lightning seemed to course through the kiss as Sam leaned into it, and his hands moved to cup Rory's face. They broke apart, and Sam looked into Rory's eyes. Tears were falling down both of their faces.

"I do love you. I do need you. Rory, will you be my boyfriend?" Rory made a small smile, and nodded his head gently. "I'm sorry, I can't quite hear you." Rory glanced back up at Sam, laughing gently.

"Yes. I'd love to be your boyfriend". Sam smiled at his boyfriend. Wow. His boyfriend. He moved forwards, going in for another kiss. It was perfect. Rory couldn't believe it. His plan had actually worked. He smiled as he felt Sam's tongue moving along his lip, asking for access. Rory allowed the boy in, and the blonde pushed himself into the kiss. He lay back on the bed as Sam climbed on top of him. The kiss deepened and Rory felt tears of joy rolling down his cheeks. His first boyfriend. Sam Evans.

_I wish that without me your heart would break,_

_I wish that without me you'd be spending the rest of your nights awake,_

_I wish that without me you couldn't eat,_

_I wish I was the last thing on your mind before you went to sleep._

Sam could feel Rory getting into the kiss, and as he positioned himself to get more comfortable, he felt the boy's erection rubbing against his leg. That was an instant turn on, and Sam felt himself straining against his trousers. He pulled away from the Irish boy, and gave him a wink, moving in for another kiss as his hand traveled south, cupping his boyfriend's erection through his jeans. Sam felt Rory tense, and he smiled into the kiss as the Irish boy relaxed. He felt cruel palming the boy through his jeans, so as he continued the kiss, he lifted himself up more, unbuckling Rory's belt, and pulling open the boy's jeans enough for him to slip his hand underneath. The moment his hand touched the Irish boy's cock without barriers, Rory gasped, breaking the kiss. Sam slid back, pulling Rory's jeans with him, properly exposing him for the first time. Sam took a deep breath.

"God Rory, you're so beautiful." Rory blushed as Sam's hand moved up and down his length, and groaned in pleasure as he felt the boy kiss his thigh, moving up towards his dick. As Sam's tongue first met with the head, Rory jerked up. This was his first time ever do anything sexual with anybody, and it was the most amazing experience. He wasn't sure how long he could last, and when Sam took him into his mouth fully, he knew he was going to cum soon.

"S-Sam, I'm going to…" Sam nodded and just moved quicker. Rory wrapped his fingers in the blonde's hair, and soon he could feel his orgasm coming. Sam continued to suck him while he came, and after he was done, Rory pulled him up to kiss him.

_Look, all I know is that you're the nicest thing I've ever seen,_

_And I wish that we could see if we could be something,_

_Yeah I wish that we could see if we could be something._

As Rory lifted Sam's shirt off the boy, he was completely taken aback by the beauty of the boy he was now going out with. Sure, he had seen Sam shirtless before – hell, they were living in the same room, but… But now he could touch, he could feel. Sam was his, and nobody else's, and as he felt his pride rising, he began to lower himself, making sure to touch Sam's body on the way down. He undid his lover's trousers, making sure to pull his boxers down with them. Sam was certainly packing – no doubt about that. God, it was so perfect. Sam was just generally perfect. Rory held the boy's dick in his hand, getting used to the feel of it before wrapping his lips around the tip. Sam grunted. Rory had said he'd never done anything before, was he lying or was he just a natural? Rory moved his tongue around, and he could feel Sam beginning to lose control. The blonde patted Rory's head, letting him know he was about to lose control. Rory didn't stop. He wanted to taste Sam, to treat him the same as Sam had done him. He couldn't quite swallow it all, but that apparently didn't matter as Sam pulled him up for a kiss, tasting himself on Rory's lips. Sam smiled. Rory smiled. They were together and happy.

* * *

**So there we go! Oooh romance is happening :D Sory romance is a goooo! Hey, do you think I've said romance enough in this little bye-bye bit yet? Well, actually, it's because it's the name of the next section! So yeah, I'll see you next time in... Romance ;)**


	12. Romance: Happy

**Author's Note: So I know it's been a while, and I'm sorry it's taken so long to update, but I think that by taking my time with this story, and making sure I write only when I really want to, I will hopefully be able to produce a much better piece of work. So, just as a quick recap, at the end of the last section, Sam and Rory decided to get together and become a couple, and, although Sam at first had some reservations about the idea, he came to the conclusion that ultimately, he could love both Rory, and the memory of Blaine. Anyway, it's been too long a wait for me to be busy garbling away up here, so on with the story!**

* * *

"Happy. It's an abstract word guys. I'm sure each of you have a completely different interpretation of it, and along with that, each person has a different way of achieving that emotion. For all of you in here, I would hope that glee manages to bring you happiness, but I know for a fact that this club isn't the only thing that makes you happy – for example, we all know that Kurt finds himself at ease while shopping, and I'm sure that you jocks enjoy nothing more than the rush of adrenaline that comes with the sports you play. For some of you, it might be spending time with your boyfriend or girlfriend. But ultimately, everybody has one thing in common. We all want to be happy. It's something desirable. But what would happen if we stopped to look around at what we have, instead of what we want? Maybe then it would be even easier to feel happy. Instead of constantly waiting for that next rush, we might begin to notice that we are all pretty lucky. So that is this week's brief. I want you, as a whole group, to be grateful for what you have. Then transfer that emotion into a performance – one that, if good enough, could definitely be used for sectionals next week". Rory looked around the room. Everyone seemed pretty hyped with the theme – it wasn't often that they were given a project as a whole group. Of course, it might mean that there would be a lot of fighting over song choices, costumes, dance routines etc. but ultimately, everybody enjoyed spending time as a group. Santana, Brittany, Quinn and Puck had squirreled themselves away in a corner to discuss the issue, while Finn sat gormless next to Rachel, who already had her pad out, her pen busy scribbling away ideas. Rory closed his eyes and smiled. This was his life. These were his friends. The Irish boy felt a hand tapping on his leg, and his smile grew as he opened his eyes to find Sam standing in front of him. How did he ever manage to get with somebody as perfectly beautiful as Sam? Urgh, he felt himself going weak at the knees as Sam began speaking.

"Hey Ror? Let's go sit with Mercedes, Tina and Kurt. Maybe we can all chat about our ideas?" The blonde pulled Rory out of his seat without waiting for a response and whisked him over to their close friends. "So guys, have you got any ideas for a song choice? I was thinking maybe something with a bit of a playful edge to it?" The group nodded in agreement to Sam's suggestion, proceeding to debate feverishly about which song to ultimately pick. Sam backed away a little and took in the scene in front of him. Rory. He was just so handsome. There was something else there… Something he couldn't define… Something that made his heart do cartwheels whenever he saw that Irish smile. The way he lit up the room whenever he walked in… How was he so lucky to find another person to hold, to protect, to care for? He was blessed. After Blaine died, he didn't think he would ever find somebody that he could feel anything more than friendship for again, but then came along Rory from Ireland, like an arrow pointed straight towards his heart.

"Sam? Sam?" He was jolted out of his little reverie by Tina and Mercedes, who were smirking and waving their hands rapidly in front of his face. He glanced quickly to Rory who was busy quietly chuckling to himself. "What's wrong with you? You were giving Rory a really odd look." Sam quickly looked down at the floor, a blush climbing it's way up his cheeks. Seeing as Rory wasn't out to everyone in Glee yet, the pair had decided to keep the relationship private for a little while longer… And here, Sam hadn't even lasted a week before almost giving their situation away. Kurt managed to turn attention away from Sam and back on to the task at hand, giving Sam a chance to mouth a quick apology to Rory, who just grinned and shook his head. He hurried over to the blonde while attention was turned away from them, choosing to tell Sam before he made his big announcement.

"Sam, I would like to tell everyone about me. Just to make sure that everyone is on the same page. I mean, I'm completely out back in Ireland, and there's no point heading back into the closet just because I'm in a different country. Well, I'm not going to make a big announcement in front of the whole school, but at least the glee club should know. They are so accepting, so there's nothing to really be afraid of. Anyway I was thinking that we could maybe tell them about us at the same time?" Sam beamed at the prospect of having the whole club know that Rory was his. His and nobody else's. That felt good to say. Rory was completely his, not to be shared with anyone. He nodded, showing his support, before shouting to get everyone's attention.

"Guys, Rory has something he wants to say." Mercedes and Tina gave each other a knowing look as Rory took to the centre of the room. Although they hadn't known him long, they were looking forward to the moment that he would feel comfortable enough to come out to all of his friends here in America.

"Okay, so um, basically, everyone back at home in Ireland already knows about this, but I'm gay, and… Well, yeah I guess that's it. I just thought you should know really." He looked around the room at his friends who were all smiling at him. "And, more than that, I found a boyfriend here at McKinley. So yeah, me and Sam are, well, together". That was when the _really _loud gasp came along. Rory didn't really see what was so surprising about it, but apparently something had shocked the rest of the glee club. Well, apart from Tina and Mercedes, who were busy giving each other hi-fives. Rachel was the first to stand up, walking past Rory, and towards Sam, leaning in to give the blond a hug. Nobody else in the room heard her whispering into his ear.

"Sam, I hope you know what you're doing. You'd better be ready to love again, because Rory's new. Don't break him Sam. He's not just a toy to help you get over Blaine". The words stung, and Sam felt cut in two. In a way, he was pissed at Rachel for suggesting that he didn't have strong feelings for his Rory, but at the same time, he felt a little happy that she cared not just only his emotional welfare, but also Rory's. He smiled, and leant into the hug, hoping she would get his message that everything was going to be okay. "Right then everyone. I think I have an idea for a song we can all perform for Mr. Schue." She grinned as she headed up to the whiteboard, writing down the title. Sam smiled – he loved the song. Everyone else in the room also seemed to be in agreement – a rarity among the group.

* * *

Will sat down at his desk in the auditorium as the curtains opened on the stage. A park bench had been placed in the middle. This could be interesting. He had wanted to give them all a massive group project for a while now, and since Sectionals was only a week away, having them all work together on a brand new number would only make things easier for him in creating a setlist. Okay, shoot him, he was feeling a little lazy when he came up with the idea, and he was fed up with them relying on him so much. But then again, he was their mentor and director, it was kind of his job to make their set-list. Rachel and Sam came and sat on the bench, while Rory and Finn stood opposite them at the edges of the stage. The rest of the group stood behind them, ready for backing vocals.

_1,2,3,4,5 years go by,_

_I don't really know why I don't really know why,_

_7,8,9,11 years go by,_

_I don't really know why I don't really know why,_

_I still feel the same way I did when I was 17,_

_I still look over my shoulder waitin' for the world to change._

After Rory's announcement to the club yesterday, the boys had headed out to Breadstix, otherwise known as Lima's date central. It was actually their first official 'date' and it felt right to go and do it after their announcement in glee tonight. They probably should have waited until after to inform everyone, but Rory didn't think he could keep his excitement away from the group, and he wanted to tell them all about his sexuality anyway. The date itself however, was so perfect. Sam had obviously taken it upon himself to play the role of the consummate gentleman – he actually left the house in his car and then returned 5 minutes later to 'pick Rory up'. It was just one of those things that was so small, but so, so romantic.

_But these are the good old days,_

_These are the good old days,_

_These are the good old days,_

_And I think I'd like to stay,_

_I'd like to stay,_

_I'd like to stay._

He had actually been really panicked about what he should wear – although Sam and him actually lived in the same house, he wanted to dress at his best for his first ever date. He dug through his clothes and found the shirt he had saved up for months to buy back in Ireland. He pulled on a blazer and a pair of jeans to finish up the look. Once in the car, he was glad he had put the effort in – Sam looked fantastic. Sure, he was in much simpler clothes, but he looked so perfect – his light blue polo with his beige chinos really complemented his blonde hair and skin tone. So Rory liked paying attention to fashion – was there any problem with that? They pulled into the restaurant car park, and the boys locked the car before they headed over to the entrance, Sam's arm wrapped around Rory.

_1,2,3,4,5 years ago, _

_I didn't see a belly with a child on the inside,_

_6,7,8,10 years ago I thought I knew about love,_

_I only knew about the fight,_

_I look back and I realize all those times I was lonely,_

_Praying for something to hurry up and come and save me._

The meal itself was fantastic. Sam held his hand all the way through the meal while they recounted stories to each other from their pasts. Sam seemed particularly focused on Rory's home life, although the Irish boy transparently changed the subject every time his mother or father entered the conversation. He didn't want to think about them tonight. Especially not his father. He shivered slightly at the thought of the man, which led Sam to question if he was cold, and although he repeatedly turned down the offer to borrow Sam's hoodie, he found it being wrapped around his shoulders as he left the restaurant. The date had been so perfect. Everything was just right, and he was looking forward to the bright future he could see for himself and Sam – sure it was a little over the top, but everything just seemed so… So sure. So proper.

"Sam?"

"Yes Ror?"

"Can we go past the river on the way back to the house?"

"Of course. Why?"

"No reason. I just… The water scares me, so I want to try and gradually confront my fear." Sam hadn't ever heard that one before – he'd heard of people afraid of snakes, spiders, heck, even buttons, but never water. The more he thought about it though, the more he realized it must be a pretty common fear – heck, anyone that couldn't swim was probably afraid of it right?

_But these are the good old days,_

_These are the good old days,_

_These are the good old days,_

_And I wish that I could stay,_

_I wish that I could stay,_

_I wish I could stay._

The pair pulled up closer to the riverbank, and stepped out of the car. Sam walked up to the edge before he realized that Rory hadn't moved past the car. He returned to his boyfriend, holding out his hand.

"Come on. We'll stick together. Nothing will happen". Rory shook his head, and as Sam came even closer, he realized that the boy was actually shaking with fear. "You know what? You're close enough at the moment. How about we come back another day?" Rory nodded, and quickly got back into the car. Sam turned back to look at the river. What had happened in the past? Why was Rory so afraid? A light breeze blew through the air, wafting the willow branches along with it, and although he couldn't swear by it, Sam was convinced that he heard Blaine's voice in the wind, whispering one word. Just one word. One word, and it shook Sam to the core. _Parents._

_These are the good old days,_

_I could stay,_

_These are the good old days,_

_And the more that you let it go,_

_The faster the time goes,_

_The darker the night is,_

_The lighter the moon glows._

They pulled back into the drive, and dashed into the house, escaping the cold. The pair headed through to the kitchen, where Sam made Rory a hot chocolate, topped with all the trimmings – whipped cream, marshmallows and chocolate flakes.

"I really enjoyed tonight Rory. It was really, really great. And you were so brave to go to the river like that." Rory blushed at Sam's praise. He had enjoyed tonight as well, even when they were near the river – he just wasn't really sure how to put all that enjoyment into words. Then it hit him – Sam was his boyfriend. He didn't need to say it with words. He leant across the table, pulling Sam towards him, and placing a kiss onto the blond boy's mouth. He smiled as he felt Sam respond and lean into the kiss. As he pulled away, Sam grinned at the Irish boy. "I take it you enjoyed it too, right?" Rory smiled, and leant in for another kiss. If that wasn't confirmation, nothing was.

_1,2,3,4,5 years from now,_

_I hope I'm still getting down,_

_I hope I'm still around,_

_But 6,7,8,10 beers ago,_

_I had a revelation all is well right now,_

_It's all good right now,_

_It's all good right now,_

_It's all good right now._

Rachel sat in her room, leaning over the last picture she had with him. The last photo of her and her adoptive brother together. A tear fell and landed on the glass. It wasn't the first time it had happened, and it wouldn't be the last. She gave the photo a quick kiss and put it back on her bedside table.

"He's got someone else now Blaine. Rory. I'm not sure if he's ready for it though. There's something else there. I don't want him or Rory to get hurt. I'm worried that something is going to go wrong, but I don't know what to do. I don't know how to keep them safe. From each other. From the past. I wish I knew what to do. Finn and me are still happy. Maybe I'm just overreacting to this new info, but I just can't see a good outcome for Sam and Rory. Fingers crossed though. Maybe that's it. Maybe I should just stay there for them. Be there in case they need me."

_These are the good old days,_

_These are the good old days,_

_These are the good old days,_

_And I wish that I could stay._

Will smiled as his group finished their routine. They were brilliant, they really were. 'Happy' seemed to be a theme that they had worked well with. He scribbled down the song onto his shortlist for the sectionals performance. Maybe he keep Sam, Rachel, Rory and Finn singing it? That could work out. Rory. How was he doing over here in America? He had definitely settled into the glee routine, and was obviously comfortable around the group – he had come out to them all, which was a pretty obvious sign. Glee was just one of those places, where happy reigned triumphant. There were setbacks, there were problems, there were down times, but eventually things always seemed to right themselves within the group dynamic. These were some special kids. There was no doubt about that.

The word hovered in the air around the riverside. _Parents. Parents. Parents._

* * *

**So there you go! Another chapter down. This is really just a set up chapter, but I hope you liked it none-the-less. See you all soon, and once again, reviews are much appreciated!**_**  
**_


	13. Romance: Sexionals

**Author's Note: So I told you I was going to try and update the story quicker than I had been, and here I am with the latest instalment! I just wanted to say a massive thank you for the response to the last chapter, it was really amazing to hear that you were all really liking the story. Anyway, this is the second and, more importantly, last chapter in this section – 'Romance'. Anyway, I really hope you like the chapter, and are ready to move on in the story with me. Let's get ready to meet some new characters in the next instalment, but for now, let's focus on what's in front of us! 'Romance: Sexionals'.**

* * *

"What do you mean you aren't going to perform anymore?" Will Schuester held his head in his hands as he listened to Brittany S. Pierce explain her absurd, and frankly, quite deranged reasons for pulling out of the competition. Fuck, he really didn't need this right now. Sectionals was literally two days away, and there just wasn't enough time to completely rearrange the performances because one of his members was getting cold feet.

"I'm sorry Mr. Schue, it's just that Lord Tubbington has been missing for two days now, and I have a strong feeling that he's trying to hide the fact he has returned to his drug dealing ways. I told him that if he got caught he would be arrested, but he just wouldn't listen to me. I guess there was just too much money in it for him. Anyway, I'm going to have to go and look for him before he gets hurt, so I might not be around for a little while". Was this girl actually serious? He knew she was a little lacking in the mental department, but he had never realised it was quite as bad as this.

"And you're sure that there is absolutely no way for me to convince you to wait until after Sectionals? It is only two days Brittany." He was clutching at straws here – luckily, even if she wasn't able to compete, there would still be twelve members, their being thirteen members this year including the blonde girl in front of him. But still, was there really enough time to rework the performance to contain one less member? Her part in 'Good Old Days' would be easy enough to cover up seeing as she was only stood in the background singing backup for that number – the main problem was going to be reworking 'Laserlight'. Without his best dancer, how was he going to fill the dance break, that they had specifically included for her and Mike? He guessed Santana would just have to step in – she was a great dancer too, if not quite up to the standard of Brittany. That would have to do.

"No, I'm sorry Mr. Schue, I really need to go." He smiled and nodded at the simple girl – he wasn't really sure how much more than that she would actually understand. Before she hurried completely left the room though, he called for her to ask Santana to come meet him. She smiled before running off, presumably to find her best friend. Will left his desk and headed towards the staff room – he really needed a break after that announcement. It seemed however, that rest just wasn't going to be right now, as Sam and Rory came rushing up to him, a piece of paper clutched in the blonde's hand. Rory had red marks underneath his eyes, almost as if he had been crying, or at least tearing up a little.

"Mr. Schue? This was stuffed in Rory's locker. We're not really sure how it got there, but it fell out when he opened it to take out his books". Sam pressed the folded sheet into his teacher's hand. Surely, once Schue had read it, he would understand why Rory was upset. "Honestly, read it, it's disgusting". Will eyed the paper curiously before unfolding it. His eyes widened in shock.

"Die you Irish fag." Rory whimpered as heard the words said out loud. He really didn't need to have it voiced right now. He could feel Sam looking at him out of the corner of his eye, so he smiled meekly in an attempt to put his boyfriend's mind at rest. He was just so tired of this kind of thing. Sure, he should probably be used to it by now, especially after the reception he received back home, but that word never ceased to upset him.

"Rory, do you have any idea who would've put this in there? This is some really serious stuff." Sam sighed. Could his teacher really be this clueless? Rory had been attacked not too long ago, and the culprit had been expelled, any of his good friends would have a strong motive for this kind of hateful act.

"I have a pretty strong idea Mr. Schue. I would probably start by asking all of Rob's friends. You know, the Rob that attacked Rory not that very long ago?" Will flinched. There was a harsh tone to Sam's voice that he normally wouldn't have stood for, but considering that he had just found a seriously abusive note in his boyfriend's locker, he decided to overlook it. Anyway, the boy was probably right – Rob's friends would likely have a strong dislike for the boy who got their leader expelled. "What's more Mr. Schue, what happened to those new anti-bullying measures that Principal Figgins said he was going to implement? I haven't seen any changes around here." There it was again, that accusatory tone in Sam's voice. Challenging his authority as teacher. Undermining him. But he had a point though. As a teacher, he had a duty to his kids, and it was a duty he hadn't been taking seriously.

"Okay guys, I'm going to go and speak with Figgins about this as soon as possible. For now, could you gather the group together? We're up against the Warblers, and we're going to need all the practice we can get."

* * *

The entrance hall was always a hive of activity just before one of the competitions, and Rory had to admit, it was really terrifying him. Sure, he had overcome his nerves at the Invitationals, but that wasn't a competition. That was effectively just a showcase, in which supporters of the group could watch them perform. It was a supportive environment, while here, at Sectionals, it was a very different story. Most members of the audience were clearly supporting one of the groups – as evidenced by the crests of the competitors that so many of the audience members were wearing. He had literally seen one McKinley crest. And that was paired with Finn's mom. Most of the spectators had a red and blue bag, or a badge featuring a bird – presumably they were supporters of the Warblers. According to what Sam had said earlier, they were the New Direction's biggest competitors at this stage of the competition. Rory jumped as he felt somebody tap his shoulder, before turning around to find that the boy behind him was nobody he recognized.

"I'm assuming that you must be from the New Directions. Your group has moved on, if you haven't noticed. Go check the changing rooms, they're to the left, down there." Something was definitely off with the guy – his cocky smile was enough to make Rory unsure whether to trust him or not, but when he looked around and found himself lacking in any of his teammates, he decided that the boy must be telling the truth, so gave him a quick thank you before rushing off in the direction the boy had pointed him in. Luckily, he found Sam running back towards the entrance hall, obviously looking for him. Hey, that guy's directions were right after all.

"Rory! I was looking for you!"

"Sorry, I got distracted. Anyway, some guy told me that my group had moved on in this direction, so there was no need to worry, I would have caught up eventually." Sam smiled – it wasn't that he had been worried that Rory would get lost, but more that he might have let his nerves get the better of him.

"Come on, we're on stage in ten minutes, and you haven't even started getting changed!"

_In the blink of an eye,_

_I was falling from the sky,_

_In the blur, you took my breath away,_

_And my heart starts beating,_

_And my lungs start breathing,_

_And the voice in my head starts screaming,_

_I'm alive!_

Rory had to admit, the atmosphere on stage was, although terrifying, absolutely electric. The crowd was responsive, even if it wasn't necessarily cheering for them, and after the warm-up song of 'Good Old Days', they were all thoroughly in the zone, perfect for their next song, Jessie J's 'Laserlight'. It was a shame that Brittany wasn't going to be here – the dance she and Mike had created was amazing, but Santana had done the job well in the last two practices. It was up to him and Sam to sing the opening verse before Rachel took over for the chorus. He had really hoped that Mercedes and Tina would get a chance in the limelight, seeing as they were two of his best friends in the group, but apparently Schue had decided the time wasn't right for them, and as such, they were relegated to backing vocals while he, Sam, Puck and Quinn shared the majority of the song. Rachel of course, did get all the glory moments, although, with a voice like that, she probably deserved them.

_You're like a laserlight, burning down,_

_Burning down, on me,_

_You're like a laserlight, burning down,_

_Burning down, on me._

He had actually been pretty surprised by her reaction to his and Sam's relationship. The way she went straight up to the blonde… He hadn't realized they were particularly close – he had never actually seen the pair spend an elongated amount of time with each other, and sometimes Sam seemed to almost go out of his way to avoid her. Maybe something had happened between them in the past? Oh yes there it was, the big note. That was good. They were a good team, and he was proud to say he was a part of it. Okay, Quinn's turn. Her voice wasn't quite to Rory's taste, although he could see that it was good one – she always hit her notes. For him, it was just a little nasally. In his opinion, Sam aside, Santana had by far the best voice in the club. Maybe it lacked the range of Rachel's, but the tone in it was just something else.

_You make me feel good,_

_You make me feel safe,_

_You make me feel like I could live another day,_

_You make me feel good,_

_You make me feel safe,_

_You know I wouldn't have it any other way._

Santana and Mike moved to the front of the stage for their routine during the dance break while Rory and Sam moved towards the back. Upon turning back to face the audience, Rory noticed the boy from earlier sitting in the front row, only this time he was wearing a uniform, and surrounded by boys dressed in the same smart outfit. Was he a Warbler? That's a really big smile… Sam's got a really big smile… Oh Sam. Maybe… If they won tonight… Maybe he could do something really nice for Sam? Maybe they could go all the way. Sure, it was early, but he really did trust Sam to be gentle with him, and he would definitely stop if Rory asked right? Okay, this was definitely not the time to be thinking about this – he could already feel an uncomfortable hardness forming in his crotch, and with the tight trousers he was wearing, if he got fully hard, it would be pretty obvious. Think about horrible things Ror. Dead puppies, old grannies, ahh there it is. Gone. Shit, that was his cue, back to the verse.

_You and me, face to face,_

_And there's so much I could say,_

_On these words, and forever seem the silence,_

_Can you hear, that box bre-brea-breaking,_

_And the world starts sha-sha-shaking,_

_They keep talking, talking, talking,_

_But we're walking, walking, to the light,_

_Tonight, tonight._

He felt his hand snaking into Sam's as they awaited the results. The Warblers had given an amazing performance, and now he was absolutely bricking it. He saw Sam smile a little as he found the hand creeping into his, and he felt the blonde squeeze tightly with his fingers wrapped around his own. That was when he knew. It didn't matter what the outcome of tonight was – he wanted to do this with Sam. Of course, it would all depend on Sam as well – he couldn't exactly force himself onto the boy. For now though, he just wanted to win. He really wanted to. _Really, really _wanted to. Come on, just spit it out already. And that was when the words came: 'First place: The New Directions'. Rory felt his friends jumping around him, and Sam lean in to kiss him. Everything was as it should be. Everything was perfect.

_You're like a laserlight, burning down,_

_Burning down, on me,_

_You're like a laserlight, burning down,_

_Burning down, on me._

The boys bundled into the Evans house late, quickly saying goodnight to Sam's parents before heading up to their room. It was a comfortable room for the both of them – Rory's spare bed was always up, but there was still plenty of room for maneuvering.

"We did it Ror! We actually did it! Regionals, here we come!" Rory smiled at his boyfriend's ecstatic tone, before leaning over him to place a kiss on his lips. Sam grinned into his boyfriend's mouth, before running his tongue along those lips he would kiss forever if he could. Rory granted him access, parting them ever so slightly – just enough for Sam. God, Rory was so perfect. The boy came and sat on his lap so that he was effectively straddling him, before pushing them both back on the bed. He pulled away quickly, taking his breath before plunging back down, working his hands down Sam's shirt, exploring the blonde's chest as each new bit of skin was revealed. This was the night.

"Sam. Sam. I want to do it. I want to go all the way tonight".

_You make me feel good,_

_You make me feel safe,_

_You make me feel like I could live another day,_

_You make me feel good,_

_You make me feel safe,_

_You know I wouldn't have it any other way._

Had he heard that right? Had Rory just asked if they could go all the way? Of course they fucking could. Sam nodded and moved his mouth to the Irish boy's neck, suckling on a patch of skin just below his ear. The moan elicited by the action was sinful – there was nothing hotter, although, with his parents in the house, it would probably be better if they tried to make as little noise as possible. Regretfully, Sam pulled off, although he was nowhere near done. He knelt on the floor, shucking Rory's trousers off of him, leaving the frazzled Irish boy in only his underwear. A dark patch of precum had formed near the tip of his erect dick, which Sam leaned over to take into his mouth in one fell swoop. Rory gasped as he felt himself submerged into the hot wetness of his boyfriend's mouth. This was just insane.

"Sam, Sam. S-stop. I don't want to cum yet. Just please… Please…" Sam chuckled to himself, proud that he had reduced Rory to this hot mumbling mess.

"Please what Rory?"

"I want you to f… Just please… Fuck me…" He had never heard the Irish boy be quite so upfront about his desires, but it was hot as fuck. He reached for his bedside cabinet, where he kept his lube and condoms, and took the required items out.

_In the blink of an eye,_

_I was falling from the sky,_

_In the blur, you took my breath away._

Rory's eyes widened as he felt Sam's finger enter his virgin hole. It felt… Odd. But then Sam moved his finger just so, and… There! Fuck. This was just… There were no words, and he only had one finger up there at the moment. Once Sam deemed the boy stretched enough, he added a second finger, and then eventually a third. Eventually it was time. He rubbed more lube over Rory's hole and his condom-clad dick before slowly pushing his head in. Rory felt a tear forming at the pain of having Sam enter him, but when the blonde looked like he was going to pull away, he let a whispered 'no' pass out of him. He felt Sam gradually moving in further and further, until finally, he was fully sheathed.

"Tell me when Ror." Urgh, he was so tight. So perfect. How much longer could he hold still? Then he saw it. A slight twitch of the head. A nod. He could move. Slowly at first. Slowly, slowly. Painfully slow. Eventually, small groans began to emanate from Rory, and that was the sign that Sam had really been waiting for. He increased his pace a little, trying to find that one place… He knew he had found it when Rory's eyes widened, and a string of profanities emerged from the Irish boy's mouth. So fucking sexy. He kept aiming for that one spot, both of them being thoroughly pleasured, until he could take it no more. He felt himself shoot into the condom, and Rory followed seconds later. It took him a second before he pulled out, and chucked the spent condom. He lay down next to his boyfriend, and pulled him in for a hug. For right now, they were perfect together. It didn't take long for them to fall asleep, wrapped up in each other's arms.

* * *

**So there you go. I'm pretty sure you'll be able to guess who the mystery boy is, but we'll be seeing him again soon! Maybe. Maybe not. Ohh snap. Anyway, hope you all liked it, and will continue to read. The next section is called... *drum roll please* COMPETITION! What could this mean!? Reviews are, as always, more than welcome. **


	14. Competition: Arrival of A Rival

**Author's Note: And we're back! Yes, I've finally managed to rouse myself enough to bring Never Let Me Go out of hiatus and back into action. I just wanted to say a big thank you to everyone who showed me support while I was away, and thanks for the those who continued to read even when there was no new material for such a long period of time. Anyway, here I am, having risen from the ashes and ready to continue with this - my favourite work. Here's a quick reminder of what has happened recently in the story: Sam and Rory have become an item, despite Sam's initial worries that he wasn't completely over Blaine, and recently went all the way for the first time! Rachel had an odd feeling that the budding relationship wasn't going to end well, although she couldn't quite put her finger on what it was that made her feel that way, and the New Directions beat the Warblers at Sectionals, where Rory had a brief encounter with an unnamed Warbler member. But enough of the past, let's look towards the future! Welcome to Competition: Arrival of A Rival!**

* * *

Rory looked at the letter that had been shoved into his locker with fear, remembering what had been written on the last note he'd found mysteriously shoved in here. Still, he thought, he'd rather know what it said than just leave it there staring at him. He reached in and picked it up before slowly unfolding it. The contents of the page were actually a pretty nice surprise for the boy. It was an invitation. From Puck. He hadn't ever really had Puck down as the type to hand out actual physical invitations for events, but he guessed he must've judged wrong. He read through the letter again. 'Guys, party at mine on Friday to celebrate our win at Sectionals. Invited some Warblers too to cheer them up. Bring your own booze, I don't have the money to provide you all with that shit'. Okay so maybe it wasn't the most eloquently worded invite, but still, it was nice that Puck had made the effort. If he was being totally honest with himself, Rory had to admit he was actually really excited about the idea of a party with the New Directions - it was, after all, going to be his first party since his arrival in America (actually it was going to be his first ever). That of course raised a couple of issues. What did people wear to this kind of party? Was it supposed to be formal wear? Picturing Puck in his head, Rory shrugged off the idea that formal wear was a likely dress code. Okay, so maybe just some kind of smart-casual wear. Yeah, that would be good, he could strike for the middle ground. Of course, he could just ask Sam... No, he wanted this to be a surprise for the blond boy. He would see if he could find Tina later to ask her if they could go shopping for clothes.

"Hey, Rory, you going to be at Puck's on Friday?" Rory turned around to the voice of one Mike Chang. Having never really had much of a conversation with the asian boy, he was a little surprised to see Mike walking up to him with such a casual manner. Although, the New Directions were always pretty friendly with each other come to think of it.

"Yeah, I am. I think. I mean, obviously it will depend on whether Sam's parents will allow us to go... But I am excited. It's going to be my first real party." Mike looked a little shocked at the Irish boy's admission that he had never actually been to a proper party. But then again, maybe parties weren't such a big thing in Ireland? Bullshit, there must be loads of parties in Ireland - their culture wasn't that different from in America was it? Maybe he'd just ask...

"Wait, this is your first one? How come you've never been to a party before? Do they just not really have them in Ireland?" Rory smirked. There were plenty of parties in Ireland. He had just never been invited. He was 'the gay one'. The one nobody in his area wanted to be around. How could he admit that without sounding like a loser though? Then again, Mike seemed like a pretty decent guy... He probably wouldn't care.

"Actually, there were. I just was never invited because of... well... y'know". Rory always felt a bit awkward actually using the word gay to describe himself. He knew that's what he definitely what he was, but it just felt so bold to say it out loud. Maybe it's because of the fact that it was his association with the word that had caused him so many problems back in Ireland. Luckily, Mike understood what the boy was saying and just nodded.

"I just get so angry that people treat others in that way." Mike checked his watch as he finished his sentence. "I'm sorry Rory, but I've got to get to my lesson. I'll see you later". Rory watched his friend dash off towards maths before returning to sort his books out. He loved having first period free, it gave the day a much more gentle pace. He looked up, having finished sorting himself out and glanced at the clock. Tina should be arriving any minute. She was always late when she had an early free - she would always accidentally lie in, something that always made Rory chuckle when she'd walk in promising herself that next week she'd be at school at normal time. He sauntered up to the front of the school to see if he could spot her coming. There she was - dashing towards the doors, hoping that for once she'd get to school before the bell rang to mark her as late. Too late. Rory had to laugh as he saw her face having heard the bell. It was at that point her run transformed into a leisurely stroll. Hey, if she was late anyway, there was no point in rushing right? Rory walked up to greet her with a hug which she happily reciprocated.

"Hey Rory, how are you?" Rory could never fault Tina's politeness. Even when she had just ran down the road, she still made sure to enquire after her friends. He smiled at her.

"Yes thanks, I'm good. I found this in my locker". He handed her the note, which she took with a worried look on her face. "Don't worry Tina, it's not another one of those horrible notes". Her expression lightened after hearing that. It made Rory smile even more than he already was - it was nice to have someone looking out for him.

"Oh, cool. Party at Puck's. Should be good". Tina handed the note back to Rory and smiled. "You're gonna come right?"

"Hopefully yeah, but there's something I need you to help me with. I mean, I would ask Sam, but I want it to be a surprise for him. So yeah, I was wondering if you wanted to come shopping for clothes with me after school? I'm not really sure what kind of thing to wear, plus I need some new nice clothes anyway..." Tina wasn't exactly one to turn up shopping. Hell, it was probably her favourite activity (glee aside). Rory had definitely come to the right place. Tina looked at her timetable to quickly remind herself what time she could leave school that evening.

"How about we meet here at 3:00 and we'll head into the shopping centre?" Rory nodded. "Now, if you don't mind me dashing off, I've got to try and find my History teacher..." With that she ran off down the hall.

* * *

Sam headed towards his locker after his English lesson. What lesson did Rory have now? Probably maths. Yeah, that sounded right. Their timetables were actually pretty different - Sam always seemed to have frees when Rory had lessons, and vice versa. On a normal school day, Sam would probably only see his boyfriend at lunchtime, glee and then back at home. Okay, so fair enough he had Rory all the time back home, but still... As he turned the corner, he found Puck leaning against his locker.

"Hey Puck, what's going on?" Puck looked up from the ground to see Sam coming towards him. Took him long enough to get here - Puck couldn't actually remember how long he'd been stood here. It felt like hours, but he had to admit to himself that it was probably only ten minutes or something stupid like that.

"Sam! Well, I thought I'd come and speak to you in person about this." The blond boy's brow furrowed in confusion. That didn't sound too good. "Don't worry, it's nothing bad. Well, I don't think it is. I'm having a party on Friday to celebrate our victory at Sectionals. I'm inviting some Warblers too. But that's not important. I'm just thinking... Are you going to be okay with coming? I just thought that you might have some bad memories of parties at my house considering what happened last time..." Sam gulped, he really didn't need to be reminded about that, he still felt the sting of Blaine's death every day. Puck patted him on the back. "Mate, I'm gonna let you have some time to think about it. I'll see you in a bit." He left, and Sam leant his back against the locker. Blaine. There was no escape. Even simple things like a party would have the strongest connotations to his old boyfriend. Being completely honest with himself, he had to say that even though he was now with Rory, there wasn't a day that he didn't miss Blaine. And that was something he felt constantly guilty about. Blaine was just... Something special. And now he was angry with himself. So was Rory right? He was also special. It really wasn't fair of him to keep comparing Blaine and his new boyfriend. He really liked Rory, so why was it that he couldn't keep out of Blaine's shadow? It was obvious really. As much as Sam liked Rory, he just hadn't had the same length of time with him as he had with Blaine. The more he got to know Rory, the more he liked him. The more he loved him. So what would he do about Puck's party? There was really only one answer to that. He had to go right? Rory would probably really want to. This was just going to be one of those events that he would have to plough through. He really wanted Rory to be happy, and if going to Puck's would do that, then he would just have to go. Sorted.

"Sam!" The blond boy felt two familiar arms wrap around his waist as his name was called. He turned around to plant a kiss on Rory's cheek. "Let's go get some lunch. Oh, did you hear about Puck's party? I'm really excited. Me and Tina are going out later to sort out my outfit." Sam smiled as Rory continued to talk about how he wanted to keep what he was wearing a surprise so he would be keeping it all at Tina's. Yeah, he really did love Rory.

* * *

Sam walked up the steps to Puck's house. Deep breath. It'll be okay. He wished Rory was arriving with him, but sticking to his word, the Irish boy was getting dressed at Tina's. He knocked on the door to be greeted by... "Sebastian?" Sam didn't really know who he was expecting when Puck had said he was inviting some Warblers, but he really hadn't expected this guy to be here. The guy that had cheated on Kurt back when they had dated.

"Sam... right?" Sebastian held out his hand to greet the blond boy he had seen every now and then again. He had never actually been properly introduced to any of Kurt's friends. Shame really, this Sam guy was hot, even if not necessarily his type. He preferred slim boys over the built jock type. "Come in. A couple of your friends are already here." He held the door open as Sam shuffled in past him to see Mercedes, Finn and Rachel in the living room.

"Hey guys!" Sam walked in and hugged Rachel as he spoke. Finn smiled at him.

"We were hoping you'd show! Oh, there's someone at the door. I'll get it." Finn walked off towards the front door as Sam made idle chit chat with his friends. "Hey, Sam, there's someone here for you!" Finn walked back into the living room with a smile on his face before pushing Sam towards the door. There stood Rory and Tina. Rory. Fuck. He was wearing a light blue denim shirt with the top two buttons undone (just enough to tease, the blond boy thought), which were then paired with just some plain beige chinos. Overall, he looked hot. Like, fuck, let's just have sex now hot. He did however notice that he wasn't the only one gawking at Rory. In the corner of his eye he could see Sebastian staring too. There was no way he was having any of that, so he walked up to his boyfriend before putting his arm round him and going for a full on kiss in the middle of the hallway. Okay, he was protective... So what? Rory was blushing as Sam came up to him. Surely they shouldn't be doing this here? Wasn't it a little public? As Sam moved off, Rory smiled.

"So... are we going to go to see everyone else?" Rory patted Sam as he moved into the living room, who followed, smirking at Sebastian. Oh yeah, Rory was his boyfriend. And no-one else's. Sam led Rory over to where Puck was standing next to the drinks table. He grabbed a cup before pouring in some vodka.

"Let's get this party going!" Sam shouted before downing his shot. Puck smirked. This was going to be a good night.

It was half eleven when Rory got up in his drunken stupor and moved towards the iPod. He scrolled through the music, the words all a blurry fuzz to his swimming eyes. Sam was off somewhere talking to Rachel, and now the Irish boy really wanted to dance. There, that was it!

"Oh my god!" Rory shouted as he found the track. "I can't believe any of you have this!" He pressed play as he scoured the room for Sam. Hmm, nowhere to be seen. As the beat kicked in, a drunken Tina and Mercedes got up to dance with Rory. Really, it was just a jumble as the drunken group attempted to stay in time with the music.

_Baby, I'm staring at a piece of us,_

_Shattered on the sidewalk,_

_Tragic, broken like a china doll,_

_Burning like a gun shot._

Mike came over and began dancing closely with Tina, and soon Puck had arrived to take care of Mercedes. Rory was alone again. Once more he checked the room for Sam, but still no sign. He tripped over his foot as he began walking towards the kitchen to try and find his boyfriend, but as he fell he found himself being caught by some unfamiliar hands.

"Y-you're Seb-Sebastian right? You're th-the guy who helped me at Sectionals! Wow, you're pretty tall!" Sebastian smiled as he picked helped Rory regain his balance.

"Yup, that's me. Now, how about we have a nice little dance?" Rory nodded as he stood up straight. Finally, he had a partner to dance with.

_My heart was beating,_

_And so was yours,_

_We threw each other,_

_Down on the floor,_

_My heart is breaking,_

_It's made of glass,_

_I guess anything that's good never ever lasts._

Sam looked up as Kurt ran into the room. He looked flustered. He caught Sam's eye and he called the blond over.

"Um, Sam, I think you might want to come into the front r-ro-room." The smell of alcohol on Kurt's breath was strong, and he was obviously completely wasted by the fact he was now pretty much laying on Sam. But still, there must be something in the front room that he should see. Plus, he was gonna go and get back to Rory anyway. He walked into the room. What the fuck!? Sebastian was practically grinding against Rory. Did that guy have no boundaries? Rory was obviously completely out of it by the fact he was pretty much reliant on Sebastian to remain standing. That weedy fucker was taking advantage of his boyfriend!

_So baby if you love me, let me know,_

_'Cause everything that hurts you've hurt before,_

_You're about to tear this love apart,_

_And break another glass heart._

Sam walked up to the dancing pair. Rory looked up as he felt someone nearing him. Sam! His boyfriend was finally here! He leaned forward to give him a hug, but ended up leaning too far and relying on Sam to catch him.

"I love you Sammm" Sam chuckled at Rory's slurred speech, before looking up and glaring at Sebastian. Sebastian simply chuckled to himself as he backed off of Rory.

"Stay away from him". Sam's tone was deadly serious. Rory was his boyfriend, and there was no way he was letting anyone, especially Sebastian Smythe, get in the way of that.

_Promise that we'll never fall apart, fall apart,_

_And I'll love you with my glass heart,_

_And I'll love you with my glass heart._

Sam opened the car door and helped Rory into the passenger seat before strapping his seatbelt on. Luckily, Sam hadn't actually drunk anything after his first shot of vodka so he was still okay to drive. He looked back towards Puck's, where Sebastian was standing in the door. Sam shot him a look, but the guy didn't budge. He walked back up to the house to talk to Seb.

"Seriously, if you try anything with him, I'll hunt you down and... God knows what I'll do". Sebastian, being his usual self just smiled back at Sam.

"Me? Try anything? You must be joking right?" He smirked as Sam walked back to the car. That guy could go fuck himself.

_So baby if you love me, let me know,_

_'Cause everything that hurts you've hurt before,_

_You're about to tear this love apart,_

_And break another glass heart._

"So you really going to go for it then?" Puck looked up at his friend, having wormed his way to the door to quickly wave goodbye to Sam and Rory. Sure, trying to break a couple up wasn't the most moral of things, but let's face it - what that couple had wasn't going to last forever. Rory lived in Ireland, and long distance relationships just never work out as they are intended to. No matter how valiant an effort is made.

"I am. I want him." Sebastian smirked as he thought of how it would be to see that little Irish boy on his knees, his dick in that little Irish mouth. There was no doubt about it - he was going for it. And of course, with the looks he'd been getting from Sam, taking Rory would not only be rewarding in the sexiest manner of the term, but also a hell of a lot of fun. Breaking someone as jealous and protective as Sam Evans would be a challenge, and sure, Rory seemed to be head over heels for the boy, but there was going to be a way. There was always a way. Puck would know.

"Just be careful Seb. I don't want you hurt. I care too much." This was getting way to sentimental for the boy now. Puck was great and all, but every now and again he would just get this irritating emotional quality to him - something that Sebastian had never admired in his 'allies'. A conscience was what hurt the people he broke. A conscience was something he had slowly tried to eradicate from his system. It was the only way in life. You have to take what you want. But then, Rory wasn't going to be his tonight. And Puck was here...

"I see you've been a bit unlucky with the girls tonight Noah. How about we go and relieve some... Tension together?" Puck smirked at the thought of what was coming. Everyone had cleared out of the house now, leaving solely him and Seb, and he knew exactly what the boy had in mind in order to have fun and release all that pent up energy. "And maybe when we're done, you can tell me all about little Sammy Evans". Puck smiled and leaned into Seb, placing a kiss on the boy's neck as he guided the pale boy's hand to his crotch.

"Fair enough, but you have to pay up first Seb." Puck winked at the other boy, who grinned back. That was the Puck he liked - the sex shark. He lifted his hand to the Jewish boy's back, guiding him back inside the house, closing the front door with his foot behind him.

* * *

**So there we go. Once again, a massive apology for the wait, and an even bigger thank you for sticking with me! Lot of love, and see you all soon!**


End file.
